A Tale of Two Destinies: The Chamber
by Wendi Jo Harper
Summary: The sequel to A Tale of Two Destinies: The Stone. Read that first to be all caught up. Ginny and Harry have gone back in time, and Ginny's going to her first year at Hogwarts all over again. But the changes they've made have consequences. COMPLETE
1. The Bond Begins

A/N: Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed "A Tale of Two Destinies: The Stone." Here, as promised, is year two. Ginny joins Harry at Hogwarts. There will be all sorts of fun and excitement, not to mention danger and suspense! You should read the first story before this one to catch up on the changes made, otherwise, some of this won't make sense. And no...I won't tell you who ends up with the Diary this time around. 

**A Tale of Two Destinies: The Chamber**

"Get up, you git!" a very insistent female voice roused Harry Potter from a rather pleasant dream about playing quidditch. He rolled over and opened one eye.

A bouncing red blob was next to his bed. Harry groaned and reached for his glasses, only to discover that the blob was Ginny Weasley.

"Can't you let me sleep in at all this summer?" he asked her blandly.

"No," she replied with a smile. "You agreed to do this bond, and I'm holding you to it. Today, Minerva McGonagall is coming over for tea with Mum, and I'm going to pretend to fall off my broom. In reality, you and I are going to do the bond spell, and they'll all believe we've accidentally bonded. Therefore, we don't have to make up a reason. It's not as strange if we've saved each other."

He sat up and yawned. "When did you save me?"

"Dur!" Ginny laughed, smacking him. "I was a four year old phenom, saving the Boy-Who-Lived from his abusive uncle!"

Harry hugged her, grateful again that fate had sent them back together. He didn't know what he would do without Ginny.

"Ginny," Sirius' voice sounded from the hall. "I'm glad you live just across the way. Every time I wake him, he swings at me."

Harry's godfather opened the door and smiled at the sight of his godson hugging the girl next door. The two reminded him of Lily and James in their later years, but Ginny's brother, Ron, and Harry's friend, Hermione, reminded him of his friends through the rest of school. It was healing for the man's soul to be around them all.

"Did you think about what I told you, Padfoot?" Harry asked, standing up from his bed.

Now the man looked troubled. "Yes. But we'll discuss it after you're dressed. Come back downstairs with me, Ginny."

Once the three of them were eating breakfast (Sirius cleared it with Molly first), the man spoke.

"I did think about everything I did in school, Harry," the former Gryffindor said slowly. "And I was frequently out of line. But...I'm just not sure that Professor Snape would ever forgive me. I don't think you understand how antagonistic we were to one another."

"That's a five galleon word," Ginny muttered.

Harry glanced at her, amused, then turned to Sirius.

"I know, Padfoot. But he helped me a lot after seeing Voldemort. I know that you two don't like each other, but if you would just talk, it would mean a lot to me."

He watched as the man sighed in defeat. He knew that the two men would be able to put the past behind them, if they would both act like adults.

"I'm going over to Ginny's this afternoon."

Sirius nodded his consent, too busy with his own thoughts to wonder whether Molly had plans for the day.

* * *

That afternoon, Ginny and Harry hovered around the back window waiting for the professor to arrive. Ginny had decided that Harry should say the quick incantation, and she would scream to gather attention so that the bond could be witnessed.

Everything went just as they had planned, except, they were knocked unconscious by the backlash. When Harry awoke, he felt a sudden wave of nausea and pain even before he tried to sit up. He opened his eyes and found he was in his own bedroom, and Sirius was sitting next to him.

"Hey cub," the man said gently. "Don't try to get up. You were magically exhausted and I brought you home to rest."

"Where's Ginny?" Harry slurred, wondering what had gone wrong to make him hurt this bad.

"She in her own room. You probably saved her life. Molly found a broom near you and we guessed you must have caught her."

"It hurts..." Harry wheezed, suddenly finding it hard to breathe. "Padfoot...why?"

Sirius looked surprised and panicked. "I'm calling Molly, kiddo. Don't move."

Harry would have laughed if he'd been able. The thought of moving when he felt like he was dying was the worst suggestion he'd ever heard. As Sirius left the boy's room, the shouts of Molly were heard downstairs. It felt like years passed, with Harry's breathing getting more shallow by the moment, before the adults burst into Harry's room, Molly cradling her daughter with Minerva McGonagall directly behind her.

"If you lay her next to Mr. Potter, they should get better quickly," the transfiguration teacher instructed. Harry and Ginny's assumptions were correct - their professor did know about bonds.

As the girl's limp form was placed next to him, Harry felt air returning to his lungs. Almost unconsciously, he and Ginny turned to hold each other. Clinging to her, he fell asleep.

When Harry woke again, he was still in his room, though it was now dark. He wondered how many hours had passed since they'd been knocked out. Ginny still lay next to him, and although her face was a bit pale, her eyes were open and staring at him.

"Oops?" she whispered.

He hugged her tightly, grateful beyond words that she seemed alright. They sat up and moved to get off the bed.

"What now?" Ginny asked quietly. "I can't even begin to imagine what they're thinking. I don't even remember coming here."

"I remember it," Harry muttered. "I thought I was going to die, and then they brought you in. I was so afraid that we screwed it up and I had lost you."

He choked back the tears that threatened and Ginny hugged him.

"My poor Harry."

Soon they left the room, holding hands as a way of maintaining contact. They found Sirius and Molly in the kitchen, along with McGonagall and surprisingly, Dumbledore and Snape - the last of whom gave them a rather pointed stare when they entered.

Harry tensed, wondering briefly if Severus had told the headmaster everything.

"You're awake!" Molly cried, hugging the two children to her. "You two scared me to death!"

"Sorry, Mum," Ginny said. "We didn't mean to..."

Harry said nothing, even when Sirius held them both close. If he had known that the spell would end like that, he didn't know if he'd have done it. Glancing over at Ginny, and knowing that she was now bonded to him, he suspected he might.

"I've asked the Headmaster to come talk to you about what happened," McGonagall explained gently. "He knows quite a bit about what may have happened."

"Are we in trouble?" Ginny asked.

"No, dear," Molly assured them. The matronly woman put an arm around her daughter and lead her away from Harry and toward the table.

After watching Ginny take about three steps, Harry suddenly felt as though he was on fire. Intense pain spread through his system. The little girl wrapped her arms around her middle and moaned, while her friend fell to his knees. Ginny met his eyes and fell to her knees as well, crawling back to his side. The two children reached for each other, and almost as soon as they hugged each other close, the pain lessened.

"I thought that might be the case..." Dumbledore mused.

Sirius and Molly were too surprised to move. They only stared at the two children, kneeling in the floor hugging one another.

"What is it, Albus?" McGonagall asked.

"It would seem you were correct, Minerva, in that the closeness of Harry and Ginny has prompted the budding of a bond."

"Bond?" Sirius gasped, finding his voice. "Like between soul mates?"

"They're too young!" Molly instantly protested.

Dumbledore shook his head. "This is not saying that they are essentially married, or that they will have to stay together for the rest of their lives, Molly. It appears from the symptoms that the children have accidentally formed a bond of Carus Iunctus. That just means that the two of them will be connected in a way that the rest of us aren't. At the least, they will always be close friends."

The Weasley mother looked unconvinced. "Then why does it hurt them to separate?"

"It is simply a common beginning to forming a bond. They have no power over it," the headmaster clarified. "Carus Iunctus can form between any two people who are emotionally close, and who feel they owe each other their lives. It doesn't mean that they have no other choices in life."

Now that they weren't feeling the pain anymore, Harry and Ginny looked at each other, confused. All of their research said the exact opposite about their relationship that the headmaster was telling their parents. They wanted to ask him, but couldn't reveal that they had done the bond on purpose.

"The downside," Albus sighed, "is that it seems the children cannot leave each other's presence for the time being."

"For how long?" Molly asked, fear for her child and the boy who was like a son to her clear in her eyes and voice.

"I will check the records and let you know. Now, Molly, why don't you and Sirius go with Minerva to explain to your family that Ginny will be staying here at Sirius' home for a few days, and Severus and I will talk to the children."

Soon the two children found themselves alone in the kitchen with the headmaster and potions professor.

"All right, Harry, Ginny," Albus said congenially, the ever-present twinkle in his eye shining brightly. "Care to explain what's going on?"


	2. Dumbledore

**A Tale of Two Destinies**

Harry stared at the white haired man in shock and suspicion. A quick glance at Severus showed him that the other man was just as surprised as the boy was. Ginny's grip on his hand grew tighter.

"What are you talking about, sir?" he ventured.

Albus leaned toward him. "There are too many inconsistencies, Harry. I've noticed you react before something happens, once or twice. What is it that you know?"

The two children stared at each other before Ginny spoke. "We should have expected not to be able to hide too much from you."

Albus smiled as though he'd won a secret battle, and Harry immediately tightened his grip on Ginny's hand. She stopped speaking to look at him curiously, shaking her hand a little to release the pressure.

"At this time, though, can I ask you a question?" Harry appealed. At he headmaster's nod, he continued. "Why is Voldemort trying to kill me? This has happened twice now, and when something has happened twice, you must think of it happening a third time."

The white haired wizard frowned temporarily. "Harry, it is a difficult story to say, and you are so young. I really feel that it would be better to wait to discuss these things until you are older."

Ginny snorted in disbelief, knowing why Harry stopped her. After all, why trust the Headmaster when he didn't trust them? "Then when you feel he's ready to hear the truth about his life, we'll share with you some truth as well."

"Miss Weasley," Albus cautioned. "Whether you are bonded with Mr. Potter or no doesn't mean that you have a right to know everything about his personal life."

"No, but the fact that I love her more than any other person does," Harry retorted, a cold glare aimed at his headmaster. "I respect you sir, but you are making a mistake. You see, we know all sorts of information about soul bonds...we thought we had one last year and so we researched them."

"And either you were misinformed, or you lied to my mother," Ginny added. "_Carus Iunctus _does mean that two people are essentially married. If that's what we did."

Harry nodded at her when she remembered to cover her knowledge at the end. Now more than ever, Harry wanted to protect Ginny from Dumbledore.

"Molly would not have taken it well," the headmaster defended himself. "I though we could spare her for a few more years."

Harry burst out laughing. "Once again, Professor, you are acting as though no one is capable of thinking for themselves but you! We make our own choices in life, and right now, I'm choosing to ask you to leave."

"Harry, I'm just doing what I feel is best!"

"That's the only reason we haven't cursed you, underage restriction or no," the red haired girl replied cheerfully. "Do please show yourself out, and don't go to the Burrow, as we're headed there next."

Albus shook his head slowly. "I'm sorry this hasn't gone as well as I hoped. I will see you both at beginning of term."

As the Headmaster had flooed away, Severus stood to follow.

"Well played, Potter," the potions master said, the ghost of a smile on his face. "I'm feeling a little more open to speaking with the mutt now. Though I believe I'll wait a few days."

With a bow, Severus was gone. Harry and Ginny sighed simultaneously.

"That was horrifying," the girl smirked.

Harry grinned. "You think that was bad...wait until we go tell our families the truth about the bond."

Ginny groaned. "Mum's going to kill me."

Harry lead her to his and Sirius' library to get a book he knew was there. It was the book from which Ginny had gotten the information about the bond. Flipping through the pages while Ginny hugged him, Harry found the page that he was looking for.

They crossed the street and found the whole Weasley family, save Arthur who was working late, in the living room.

"Bill! Charlie!" Harry and Ginny cried, moving together to hug their big brothers. Harry still loved this family more than he could have loved a family by blood.

"I'm glad you came over," Molly said. "Professor McGonagall just left, and we were about to tell your brothers."

"Okay," Harry said. "But then can we talk alone in the kitchen? It's kind of important."

Sirius answered. "Of course."

Without waiting, the two children headed for the kitchen. As they went through the door, Ron's voice echoed through the house.

"Why are Harry and Ginny holding hands?"

The two kids had been sitting alone in the kitchen for about twenty minutes when Arthur came in. Ginny immediately got up to give him a hug, which meant that Harry had to go too. Arthur looked at the two of them, and sighed.

"I got interesting news today, concerning the two of you...where's your Mum?"

"Right here," Molly said, opening the door. "The boys have a few questions, kids. Then they're going to their rooms for the night. After that, we'll talk."

Harry and Ginny took the hint and left the room, to find themselves in the midst of six red faced Weasley males.

"Harry...what did you do to our sister?" Charlie started.

Instantly fearing how this bad attempt at a joke would affect her best friend and only love, Ginny glanced at Harry and confirmed her suspicion. She saw that deep down, he was still afraid of losing her family.

"You foul, evil gits," she cried out, unconsciously placing herself between Harry and her brothers. "Even if you hadn't grown up with Harry, you still know better than that! He's always considered us his family, and you aren't going to try this joke on him. It hurts him, and I'll curse you lot to bloody hell and back before I let you do that!"

Her older brothers looked surprised and slightly ashamed of themselves. Their threatening pose was replaced by one of submission, and Harry marveled at the control Ginny exerted over them.

"It was just a joke," Ron said quietly. "We're sorry, Harry."

"It's ok, Ron, everyone. I was really scared for a minute there."

A few lighter jokes were exchanged, and the Weasleys still in school started trickling toward bed. Ron was the last, and he left after commenting that he always knew Harry and his sister had a weird friendship.

"I know you want to talk to Mum and Dad and Sirius alone," Charlie began. "But Bill and I would like to sit in."

"No more bad jokes?" Ginny demanded.

"Brother's honor."

They trooped into the kitchen and found three pale adults.

"What's going on?" Harry asked, tensing immediately.

Ginny shook her hand a bit to remind him not to crush it.

"Your father was told at work that a magical betrothal was recorded today at the Ministry. They came to tell him about it, seeing as it was between Harry Potter and Ginevra Weasley."

Ginny bristled at the use of her full name, but controlled it. "That's what we wanted to talk to you about. The headmaster fibbed a bit about our bond, and we wanted to tell you the truth."

Harry set the book he still carried on the table.

"We've wondered for a while whether we had a bond or something, since we've always felt so comfortable around each other, so this past year we started reading up on them."

Sirius took the book and looked up the bond Dumbledore had mentioned. "_Carus Iunctus _is one of the strongest soul bonds, and can be formed accidentally or through intent, though the forming of this bond has been restricted due to the complications that can arise. It brings two souls together for protection, and allows instant communication and an alertness to the dangers each person faces."

He quickly skimmed the rest of the passage and looked up at Molly and Arthur with a pale face.

"What is it, Sirius?" Arthur said.

"This book says the kids are essentially one now, and that they're more or less married."

Molly began crying, and Bill and Charlie sat in shocked silence.

"Mum, don't cry!" Ginny moaned, dragging Harry to hug her. "It's ok."

"No it isn't, Ginny...you aren't even off to Hogwarts yet, and you're practically married!"

Harry was shocked to find tears on his own face also, and hugged the only mother figure he'd ever known. "I'm sorry Mum...I'm sorry..." he sobbed.

Surprise at Harry's reaction to her tears, Molly stopped crying at once. She hugged both children fiercely, soothing them.

"It isn't your fault, Harry...it's going to be fine...shhh. It's all right, baby. I was just surprised it all. I don't know why Albus thought it was better to lie to us."

Ginny snorted derisively. "I know he's a great wizard, Mum, but he seems like a control freak. He told us that he knew why Voldemort tried to kill Harry, but then he said he didn't need to know. Don't you think he needs to know?"

"I think that if someone is trying to kill you, then you should at least get to know why, I suppose. But Harry is awfully young dear."

"He wasn't to young to almost be murdered..." the younger girl murmured darkly.

"I think you two should go with Sirius and go to bed. We'll discuss it tomorrow when we aren't so tired," Arthur decided, standing up.

Thinking it was a very good idea, everyone in the kitchen headed to their beds (Ginny to Harry's) but only the recently bonded pair felt the slightest bit sleepy.

Harry lay there, chastely holding his once and future wife, and smiled in spite of everything. Ginny sighed contentedly.

"It's nice to be back," she yawned.

Harry hugged her and they drifted off to sleep, knowing some of what the future held, and not caring for this one night.

A/N: Wow!! Over 50 reviews for the first chapter of this one. I'm so surprised and flattered. I'm so glad you like this, as I've tried really hard to make it something good. I hope each of you keep reviewing, but if not, I understand. I'm going to keep writing regardless. (But I'd be lying to you if I said that many reviews didn't push me just a little faster.)


	3. Family Meeting

A Tale of Two Destinies

Harry awoke and felt someone's hand on his arm. Immediately, he jumped out of bed, looking for his wand. His stomach began churning, and he remembered the previous day – with some amount of embarrassment as Ginny through back the cover and frowned darkly, taking his hand and pulling him closer.

"Idiot," she chided gently, her voice still thick with sleep. "You haven't been attacked in bed in at least seven or eight years."

He smiled down at her. "This touching rule is going to get awkward soon."

"Why's that?" she asked, returning his smile.

"I've got to use the bathroom."

The girl laughed. "Harry, I was married to you once. It's not going to embarrass me to stand in the bathroom while you use it."

The grin on his face turned into an expression that was surely stolen from the twins. "That was when we were adults and past the worst parts of puberty. Not to mention that it's much easier to explain to your brothers why an adult woman is in the bathroom with her husband, than why a nearly eleven year old girl is in the bathroom with the boy next door."

Ginny's wide brown eyes were all the response he needed to laugh uproariously. She was silent for a moment before coming up with a response that stopped his laugh immediately.

"Interesting problem you have there. I've got to go too, and I'm not the one that the boys are going to question. After all, I'm only their baby sister. They'll believe it's you corrupting me."

Harry felt himself pale at the thought.

* * *

When the two children arrived blushing in the kitchen, Sirius couldn't resist a little light hearted teasing as he finished the omelettes he was making. He'd wondered how they would react to the more private inconveniences, but was proud that they'd figured out a solution on their own. They even took his small jokes in good humor.

"Is my family coming over today?" Ginny asked as she and Harry sat down to eat.

Sirius nodded. "Yes. Except for your dad; he has to work."

"Why don't you work?" she asked.

Harry choked on his eggs and turned to stare at her like she'd grown another head. He tried to scream at her through the bond, but it seemed their link for communication purposes wasn't fully up and running. He couldn't believe she'd just asked him that. Harry chanced a look at his godfather.

To the boy's surprise, the man was leaning back in his chair, smiling. "Well, to tell the truth, it's mostly because so far I just haven't had to. I wanted to be an Auror before everything with Harry's parents happened, but now I can't see myself taking orders from anyone."

Ginny smiled angelically. "Why not do something else?"

Sirius grinned at the precocious girl. "Did you have something in mind?"

The redhead shrugged. "I don't know. What do you like?"

The man laughed. "I wasn't aware that I was interviewing for a placement witch!"

Harry felt like he was floundering. He had no idea what was going on, but he didn't want to get in the middle of it. Ginny seemed completely comfortable with questioning his godfather, and Sirius seemed to have no problem answering the girl's questions.

"I just think you'd make a good teacher," she said softly. "But you might not want to. When are Mum and the boys coming over?"

Sirius looked thoughtful, but switched topics with her. "Your mother's going to talk to them a bit, then they'll be over, so probably around ten or eleven."

* * *

Harry and Ginny were in the library reading when they heard the familiar loud voices of her brothers filling the house. The twins found them first, and shut the door behind themselves.

"Just a quick question," George started.

"Did you do it on purpose?" his twin finished.

The two children on the little sofa looked at each other for a brief moment.

"Yes," they said together.

Anything the pranksters would have liked to ask was lost as Ron opened the door and called out to the rest of the inquisition team.

"Oy! They're in here!"

"Subtle, Ron," his sister said dryly. "Thanks for deafening us all."

The youngest male Weasley stuck his tongue out at her before dropping onto the sofa next to Harry. "Why don't you two stop touching for a bit?"

"It still hurts to let go," Ginny informed him calmly. "Why don't you act like an adult?"

"Because I don't have to for a few years," Ron told her affably.

Harry resisted the urge to laugh as Molly, Sirius, and the three elder Weasley brothers entered the room.

"Ok, let's discuss the changes we'll have to make to adjust to this bond that you've formed," Sirius launched in as soon as he was seated. "Obviously, we'll have to wait and see what manifests to know which bond you have."

Molly nodded. "I don't like that you two are joined like this, but it's done now. Have you noticed anything strange today?"

Harry thought about his day. The bond was completely new, so he had no previous memories to draw from. A glance at Ginny told him she was experiencing the same problem.

"Well..." she started. "I don't think so...unless you count having to stand in the bathroom while..."

"I think I kind of feel something of what Ginny's thinking," Harry said quickly, to cut her off. "It's fuzzy, but it just doesn't feel like me."

Ginny smiled. "Oh good...I'm not the only one who's going crazy then."

Harry tried to reach out to her again, but there was a wall between them. He frowned in frustration.

Percy had a book on his lap. He was flipping quickly through the pages. "Have either of you experienced a sensitivity to light? Soreness? Memory lapse? Cold spells?"

The children in question shook their heads no to each of the prefect's inquiries. While everyone else was discussing what manifestations the bond was taking, Ron was trying to be sneaky about poking Ginny in the leg, until Harry finally snapped.

"Ron - do you mind? Ginny's about to hit you."

The twins grinned, and Ginny looked at Harry curiously. Bill and Charlie lifted their youngest brother by the arms and transported him to the other side of the room. Percy frowned deeply and began reading his book fervently. Molly and Sirius looked at each other.

"What?" Harry asked Ginny, feeling annoyed at all the attention.

"I didn't tell you Ron was poking me," she said quietly. "No one else even noticed."

Harry didn't look around, he merely pushed at the wall between their thoughts. It felt softer, like a sheet and less solid than it had.

"I knew you were getting angry," he said with a shrug. "Can't you feel me?"

"I could when you were feeling harassed with all the attention just now. The rest isn't intense enough."

Percy slammed shut the book he held. "I've got bad news, Mum. Given that Dad said they were betrothed and that they can feel each other's emotions, I'd have to say they've managed to work up a rather strong _Carus Iunctus_ bond. And it seems to be getting stronger."

Bill smiled. "So they'll be able to speak to each other nonverbally soon?"

At Percy's terse nod, Charlie spoke up. "Here now, Percy. What's got your knickers in a twist?"

The prefect sniffed and glanced disdainfully at Harry and Ginny. "It's hardly appropriate to be so supportive of this. They are much too young to have any sort of bond, let alone such an intense one."

"We might not like what's happened, Percy, but they are family," Molly snapped. "And beyond that, it isn't really their fault if they've bonded when they were so young."

Fred and George snickered, but whether it was from Molly saying the bonding wasn't their fault or the fact that she called them young, Harry couldn't tell.

Molly ignored them, rising to tower over her middle son. "You'll soon find, Percy, that things in life don't go as we'd like, and people don't always get to choose what happens. But it's how we handle those choices, and who we can really depend on that show us what life is really about!"

Percy seemed dumbfounded, as did all the Weasleys. It was a pretty safe assumption that it was the first time Percival Ignatius Weasley had ever been reprimanded by his mother.

(A/N: I can't recall if this is Percy's real middle name or if it just sounded good. No tells on what it really is, because it will be this in the rest of the line now.)

"I'm sorry, if I've offended you," he said, subdued and contrite. "I'm honestly just concerned about what people will say when it gets out."

Ginny turned to her mother. "Mum, just a question...do we have to let this get out? Not that I'm ashamed of what happened...but Harry gets so much attention now, and so does our family. I thought we could just avoid giving people another reason to stare and talk."

Molly nodded.

Sirius moved to sit next to Ginny and Harry. "I think we can keep this in the family. Don't you, boys?"

Ginny's brothers all agreed, although Ron was a bit more reluctant to agree. He thought it would have been fun to tell people that his sister was bonded to Harry Potter. Harry thought it was a bit odd, but he didn't say anything. The discussion wore on, and soon they had decided that Ginny would stay for a week, to give her and Harry a chance to get used to their bond. Harry was thrilled, and judging by the tiny, happy smile Ginny wore, she was too.

A/N: You all flatter me with the sheer volume of reviews I've been getting. Sorry this is a short chapter, but the next one is rather hard to write. I was waiting until I had it almost half done before posting this one. Something unexpected happens during the trip to Diagon Alley!


	4. Flourish and Blotts

A/N: Sorry it took a while to update. A friend of mine passed away and I just couldn't bring myself to write. Here's the newest installment at long last!

A Tale of Two Destinies

By the end of July, Ginny and Harry still couldn't communicate through their thoughts, but they were quite proficient at picking up on each other's emotions. Harry assumed they'd done the incantation correctly, because he didn't feel as though he and Ginny were one being occupying two bodies. He was still distinctly himself, he was just more aware of his once and future wife in a way he hadn't been before.

It had still been hard to watch her go back to her own home after only eight days of being together. Harry couldn't help but feel a bit frustrated. In his heart and mind, Ginny was his wife, his best friend, and his soul mate. But his body wasn't even twelve years old, and no one could possibly see a child making a life-long commitment. The Weasley boys tried to be understanding, but how can you ask a teenaged boy to accept that his eleven year old sister is bonded for life?

Harry and Ginny spent as many of their waking hours together as they could, often with Ron and Luna would come down from her house over the way. But at the end of each day, Harry was still alone in his house, and Ginny was still across the road in hers.

Sirius could only watch him mope around for so long before making up his mind. Something had to be done to stop his godson moping. On the day his school owl finally arrived, the man made a few fire calls and smiled when the boy finally came down for breakfast on a sunny day near his birthday.

"Are you still pouting?" Sirius asked.

Harry's answer was a glare. Undeterred, his godfather simply smiled.

"Eat quickly, Harry. We're going out today."

At that, the young Mr. Potter looked up in surprise. "Out? Where are we going?"

Sirius just shook his head. "What kind of surprise would it be if I told you? Just eat and get dressed."

Harry wolfed down his breakfast and jogged upstairs. As he shut his door, he realized that he was going to have to get into shape. He was taller than previously, nearly equal with Ron still, but without all the extra chores and work required by the Dursleys, he was a bit soft. Shaking his head, the boy vowed to begin working out when he returned to Hogwarts.

_How exciting!_ Ginny's voice echoed through his mind suddenly.

He dropped the shirt he'd been about to put on, and shook his head.

_What the bloody hell...?_he thought.

_Harry?_

_Ginny!_

Finally! He made contact with the Weasley female. Harry was so excited he let out a whoop.

_Harry! I can't believe it's finally working!_

And from across the road, Harry agreed mentally. _What's exciting?  
_

_I almost forgot,_ she replied. _Mum said Remus and Tonks are coming to get us and take us to Diagon Alley.  
_

_Remus and Tonks?_ Harry wondered. He was quite certain that it had something to do with Sirius' surprise for him.

_I think I'll see you there, _he informed Ginny.

The boy made no mention of it as he headed downstairs and waited for Sirius to tell him where they were going.

"First thing, we're going to pick up Neville Longbottom," the man said with a smile.

Harry blinked. He'd been so wrapped up in seeing Ginny again, he'd completely forgotten to keep in contact with his other friends. Hermione had been vacationing with her parents, he knew. Draco couldn't write because his mother's extreme dislike of her cousin outweighed even her desire to give her son anything he wished. But Neville...now that he thought about it, Neville hadn't written once all summer.

Gin? Has Ron heard from Neville this summer? he quickly asked through their link.

Yesterday, why?

Just wondering.

"I haven't heard from Neville all summer," Harry finally said aloud. "I wonder if he's been busy."

Sirius shrugged. "Let's go find out."

The two of them flooed to Longbottom Manor, and found Augusta Longbottom alone in the parlor.

"Hello Mrs. Longbottom," Sirius greeted her politely. "I don't know if you remember me, but I came over to see Frank once or twice while we were in school."

The matriarch glanced up at him archly. "I remember you, Sirius Black. You and your friends tried to turn my son into a trouble maker, and I had the hardest time keeping him from that."

To his credit, Sirius actually blushed. "Yes, well...Harry's been a bit worried over Neville this summer, as he hasn't heard much out of him. We came to see if you would mind if I took Neville along with us to get the boys' school things. I'm meeting another friend of mine, Remus Lupin, and thought Harry'd like some company."

Harry had wisely stood quietly, knowing that Augusta would not appreciate a child's opinion.

After several minutes of close scrutiny, she stood. "If you'll wait here, I'll get Neville."

Apparently, Neville wasn't too far from the parlor, because they heard voices as soon as the door shut.

"Neville, were you bothering Harry Potter in school last year? Trying to be his friend?"

"We are friends, Gran. Is that who's here?"

"I told you not to harass him. That boy's been through quite a bit."

Neville's voice took on a bitter turn that Harry had rarely heard. "So have I - remember? The two of us actually have quite a bit in common."

Harry couldn't hear Mrs. Longbottom's response, but soon the door opened. "Hiya Harry!" Neville greeted, smiling broadly.

"Hey Nev!" Harry replied, his grin matching. "I haven't heard from you all summer."

The usually shy boy glanced back at his grandmother, who refused to meet his eyes. "Some people thought it would be better if I didn't bother you. I've told Ron to say hi about a dozen times."

The black haired boy laughed. "That's like asking a rock to say hi. I've seen him about everyday and he never even mentioned writing to anyone."

The two friends laughed and Sirius put a hand on either of their shoulders.

"Thank you, Mrs. Longbottom. I'll have Neville back around dark."

The three flooed out quickly, before she had a chance to change her mind. Harry, clumsy as ever, rolled out of the fireplace at the Leaky Cauldron to the feet of his favorite redhead.

"That was graceful," Ginny commented dryly.

"Yes, well...I've yet to stick my landing," he shot back, climbing to his feet and dusting himself off. "I brought Neville."

She smirked. "I brought everyone else."

Sirius looked between the two of them. "You knew..."

Harry grinned sheepishly. "Yeah...well, our way of talking finally worked this morning."

Neville glanced at him curiously, but Harry just shrugged. Sirius, however, was pouting.

"It was a surprise."

"Cheer up, cousin," Tonks said with a grin. "We are still here to spend the day with you."

He glared at the pink haired witch. "Why did I invite you again?"

They all laughed and Harry glanced around. Remus, Sirius, Tonks, Percy, Fred, George, Ron, Neville, Luna, and Ginny were all there.

"Hermione's going to meet us a bit later," Ron said as he noticed Harry looking around. "She's back from vacation and convinced her parents that since we were all going, she wanted to as well."

"How'd you get in touch?" Harry asked. "I didn't think her house was on the floo network."

"It isn't," Fred answered. "Ron talked Dad into getting one of those fellytone things."

"Telephone," about a half dozen people corrected absently.

Harry just grinned.

The group headed out to the shops, aiming for the quidditch shop first. Sirius impulsively bought all the boys Nimbus brooms, telling them to hide them away until they were at school. Percy passed on the broom, asking if he could have something he might actually use instead. Sirius promised him a potions set.

The group walked away, chattering busily about school and the amount of people in Diagon Alley. Flourish and Blotts was the next to see them, and they met Hermione inside. She'd already found fifteen books she wanted and was still searching the shelves with her parents following behind in awe.

"Hermione!" Ron called. "Are you trying to buy the whole store?"

She looked up and blushed. "Some of us care about our education, Ron."

"What's going on over there?" George asked, pointing at the crowd in the corner.

Harry nearly groaned and Ginny covered her eyes. What were the odds of Gilderoy Lockhart holding a book signing today of all days?

"Aren't we getting all of his books for DADA?" Percy asked, consulting his list.

Harry did groan at that. He looked at Ginny.

_Remember that week we were stuck in that witch's house with nothing to do?_

She grinned. _All those inaccuracies?_

The pair exchanged wicked grins that actually made the twins cringe.

Tonks was watching the crowd with dismay. "Do we have to get in that line?"

Sirius nodded. "I believe so."

"I'll protect you," Remus teased, causing the auror-in-training to blush. Ginny nudged Harry forcefully, while he coughed to hide a smile.

As they neared the front, talking and laughing loudly in the line, earning them several glares, a man with a camera pushed by.

"Out of the way," the man snapped, shoving Ron. "This is for the Prophet."

"Sod off!" Harry and Neville snapped almost simultaneously.

"It can't be Harry Potter!" sounded an affected voice.

"Save me," the boy in question pleaded with Ron.

The redhead glared at the pompous author. "Leave him alone!"

"Nonsense," Lockhart breezed, taking Harry's arm. Sirius started to lunge at him, but Ginny stopped him.

"Harry's got a few questions for him," she whispered with her evil grin.

"You and I together are worth the front page," the would-be hero said quietly to Harry.

The accosted boy stared at the man like he was insane. "Are your books all true?"

Surprised at the question, the blonde man stopped smiling for a brief moment.

"Of course they are, my boy. Why do you ask?"

"How did you track the yeti in Siberia at the same time you were being adopted by the werewolf tribe in South America?"

A few people in the crowd giggled, and others whispered. Lockhart looked out to the crowd and then back at Harry.

"So you've read my books."

"Yes, and I hate how you portray the werewolves as blood thirsty, when they are normal people at all times except when in the light of the full moon. I think you're a monster. Killing all those innocent people on a night with no moon."

The laughter had died away, and many people began flipping through their books.

"Harry, you've misunderstood..."

"And the ghouls that you claim to have banished...ghouls don't even attack. My friends have a ghoul in their attic and it's biggest accomplishment is waking people up at night by banging on the pipes."

"Well...thanks for coming in, Harry."

"One more thing, Mr. Lockhart... The trolls? You mentioned several complicated spells that you used to fight them off, but some friends and I faced one in our first year at Hogwarts, and we outwitted it with a levitation charm."

"Goodbye, Harry." The handsome man's face was a decidedly unattractive shade of purple. He shoved the boy away from him, but Harry didn't go far.

"How did you manage to charm the famous blind hags of Negril with your smile?" he called back. "Could they hear your teeth."

Lockhart growled in frustration. "You look here, Potter."

Several of the witches in line looked up at him in surprise. The blonde man seemed to sense he was skating on thin ice, because he took a deep calming breath and smiled in a winning way.

"Harry, my boy, there will be time enough for all those questions when I join you at Hogwarts this coming year."

Harry gaped at him. After everything, they were still stuck with an idiot?

The reporters rushed in to question Lockhart, giving Harry the opportunity to escape. He slipped to the opposite end of the store, joined quickly by Ginny and the kids of their group.

"That was a nightmare," she commented sarcastically.

He didn't answer, still caught in his own thoughts and memories.

"Bet you loved that, didn't you, Potter?" a familiar voice asked, though without any malice.

They looked up to see Draco descending a staircase with an amused smirk on his face.

"Highlight of my bloody summer," the black haired boy replied. "Speaking of, how's yours been?"

"Boring. Tried to sneak out to visit, but Mum caught me."

"That's a shame," Ron said, smiling at their Slytherin friend. "Could have used your help against Harry and Ginny in a couple games of quidditch."

"Is this the girlfriend, then?" the Malfoy heir laughed. "Please to meet you, Ginny. Ron and Harry have told me a lot about you."

"I'm not technically Harry's girlfriend," Ginny greeted him with a smile. "I'm his best friend, who happens to be a girl."

"Close enough," the other boy shrugged. "Hey, Nev, Hermione."

"Oh," Ron said, remembering that Luna was with them. "This is Luna Lovegood."

Draco shook hands with the quiet girl just as his father approached.

"Now, Draco," the eerie man said. "I hope you're playing nice."

Draco didn't answer, as he tried to avoid confrontations with the senior Malfoy. When Sirius neared, the blonde man sneered.

"Black," he acknowledged. "I see you're still disgracing your family."

Sirius nodded genially. "I see you're still disgracing wizard-kind. You don't actually still hope for a return of that sadist, do you?"

Lucius snarled, "Don't speak of things you don't understand."

"Don't back idiots and I might be more inclined to listen," the Black heir shot back.

"Mudbloods and bloodtraitors."

Sirius growled and leaped at the man. Unlike the first time Harry had witnessed a fight in this store, when Arthur Weasley had been the attacker, his godfather actually seemed to be trying to hurt the other man. At one point, Lucius was thrown into the group of kids, where he picked up a nearby cauldron and swung it at Sirius' head. The two cheerfully pounded each other until the aurors appeared and separated the two men. Only, they were so pleased to be thrashing each other, the aurors had to fire several spells to dissuade the two men from their fight.

Ginny was grasping Harry's arm as they watched the fight, and neither noticed that a stray spell had struck the shelf behind them, causing it to teeter precariously. While the wizarding lawmen were pulling the Black and Malfoy heirs away from each other, several shouts of children echoed through the strangely quiet shop.  
The shelf, which stretched nearly to the ceiling, fell forward and landed on the Boy Who Lived, and the only female Weasley born in hundreds of years.

* * *

_"Harry Potter, Ginevra Weasley...I didn't expect to see you again for several years."  
_

_Harry and Ginny looked around in wonder. Nearby, they saw the watcher that had sent them back into their lives the first time.  
_

_"Oh sweet Merlin," Ginny swore. "Are we dead?"_


	5. Getting There

A Tale of Two Destinies

_Harry and Ginny stared at the watcher, half angry, half frightened._

_"This isn't it, is it?" Harry demanded. "We didn't go back just to fail...there's got to be something we can do."_

_"Please," Ginny begged, tears pooling in her eyes._

_Harry's heart ached to see her so upset, and he reached an arm around her._

_The watcher spread his hands. "I admit, this was not the ending you were meant to have. It appears it is too much to ask the two of you to handle alone."_

_Ginny was too upset to speak, so Harry took the lead. "What happens now? Do we just give up?"_

_"I can send you back one more time," the watcher said. "But it won't be as it has been. You need more help."_

_The two looked up in surprise._

_"I won't send you back alone. You're going to choose two people, who will also receive their past selves at the next blue moon. Also, we've decided to alter your bond from what you intended."_

_"What do you mean, alter it?" Ginny demanded, her fear pushed to the back of her mind. "We're already able to speak with our thoughts. How much more can you do?"_

_The watcher merely smiled. "That you must discover on you own. Your circle of friends will be very helpful in that pursuit, especially the two you choose to gift memories to."_

_"Blue moon," mused Harry. "And we choose two people to receive knowledge of what happened last time?"_

_The watcher nodded. "Until the point of their death. This will be my last gift to you, as I will not be able to intercede on your behalf again. If circumstances lead to your deaths again, then the one who calls himself Lord Voldemort will conquer and mankind will be lost."_

_Ginny and Harry stared at each other as if searching for answers in each other's eyes. They found hope, and love, and a reason to keep trying. They knew that despite the risks, they had to keep trying to rid the world of Voldemort. He couldn't be allowed to win._

_After a quick calculation, Harry looked at Ginny. "The blue moon is right after Hogwarts starts..."_

_"I know just who it should be," she replied._

* * *

Near darkness met Harry's eyes when he opened them. After the brightness that had surrounded the watcher, his eyes needed to adjust. He looked around and saw Ginny lying on a bed next to him, and guessed they were in St. Mungos.

"Harry?" she asked quietly, turning to look at him. "Where are we?"

"I'm going to guess the hospital, but where is everyone?"

"I just wonder how long we've been here."

At that moment, the door opened, and Molly entered, looking exhausted.

"Mum!" both children exclaimed softly.

With a cry of relief, the woman hugged first her daughter, then her adopted son.

"We've all been so worried," Molly said, looking closely at them, bustling back and forth, smoothing hair and patting hands. "Sirius is absolutely beside himself for responding to Lucius Malfoy's taunts. He blames himself for this."

"He's got blame issues," Harry noted seriously, causing Ginny to laugh at the irony.

"I'm going to call him. I sent him home to shower and rest, but I know he'll want to be here now."

Harry and Ginny looked intently at each other when the Weasley matriarch left. There was so much to say, so much to prepare. First they needed to know how long the watcher had taken.

_When they get those memories, they're going to be so confused. _Harry thought, running a hand through his recently smoothed hair and causing it to stand on end again.

Ginny nodded. _There's got to be a way to prepare them. At least we knew what was going on._

_I hope we chose right...are you sure on the choices?_

Ginny bit her lip and nodded. She was sure they had chosen the correct, even if not obvious, choices. The only problem was that they couldn't figure out how the two would react. Would they hate them? Would they help them?

Any further conversation was put on hold while a mediwitch came in the room to check over the two 

of them. Sirius and Molly came in while the healer was working, but stood silently by until she finished.

"I think they'll be well enough to go home this afternoon," she finally said. "I'll go start that paperwork."

As she left, Sirius sat on Harry's bed and looked between the two children.

"Harry," he began, "I am so sorry. I shouldn't have put the two of you into such danger as I did. I'm supposed to be an adult..."

"Sirius," the boy interrupted. "Stop there. You are an adult. I don't know how anyone can take the insults Draco's dad flings around. I'd like to think that you were standing up for the rest of us."

Molly smiled. "That's what I told him...after I calmed down."

Ginny giggled at her mother. "I'm sure you railed at him before that."

Molly blushed and Sirius stared in wonder at Harry. "You aren't angry with me?"

Harry shook his head. "Everything happens for a reason, Padfoot. I'm sure of it. Besides, it was fun watching you kick his arse."

"Harry!" Molly chided. "Language!"

Ginny laughed so loud that even Harry gave her a strange look.

"I'm sorry…it's just too funny…"

"What is?" Harry asked.

"The bookshelf! With everything going on, everything that could possible happen to us – to be nearly squished by a bookshelf!"

Harry finally started laughing as well, it did seem unbelievable. Molly didn't find it amusing, though.

"I've been worried sick for days and you find it amusing?" she asked, a warning tone in her voice.

Wisely swallowing any further laughter, Ginny reached toward her mother's hand. "We haven't been laying here long, have we?"

Molly smiled reassuringly. "A little less than a week, dear. But not to worry, I haven't let the boys into your room."

That comment made Ginny smile, and her smile reassured Harry that everything would be just fine.

Once they were home, everything quickly returned to the closest to normal things ever got, and Harry and the Weasleys began the long stretch toward school. Harry started doing push-ups and sit-ups in his room to get ready to begin real exercise. He only told Ginny what he was doing, and was amused that she started training herself also.

Eventually, September first rolled around, and brought much excitement. Finally, the last of the Weasley children was heading off to Hogwarts, and she was so thrilled about it that she felt about to burst. They rushed to the station, where Harry took Ginny's trunk and stowed it for her. Pansy found them while they were alone.

"Honestly, Weasley," the pug faced girl sneered. "The only girl born to your barely pureblood family in centuries, and that's the best you could come up with?"

"Who would you prefer, Pansy?" Ginny asked sweetly. "Draco? He's nice and all...but I've just got a thing for black hair." Her sweet expression soured and the two girls glared at each other before Ginny snapped, "Cut the crap, I'm eleven and you're an idiot. Go bother someone else."

Harry snickered turning Pansy's rage to him.

"I don't see what you're laughing at, Potter. You'll be first on the list when the Dark Lord returns."

Harry suddenly became deathly serious, and the air around them seemed to chill. His statement was spoken with a cold finality that caused some older students to glance in his direction. "I'm already first on the list. First to attack and to be attacked. However, this time I will destroy him utterly, and anyone who stands with him."

Pansy paled and began to tremble slightly, backing away so quickly she stumbled over the students behind her. Harry continued to glower at her until she turned and hurried away. Ginny touched his arm lightly.

"Amusing as it was to watch the pug turn tail and run," she said gently, "I think that might have been a bit overdone."

He blinked and his anger vanished. Ginny always knew the exact right thing to say. He had a sudden urge to kiss her, but he hid it as Ron approached.

"Are we all going to fit into one compartment?" the lanky redhead asked. "I count six, and eight if Draco and Daphne sit with us."

Ginny tipped her head to the side to watch her brother questioningly. "It's a magic train, isn't it?"

"Yes, why?" Ron answered.

"Wouldn't you supposed that the cars might expand to fit however many people are in it?"

Harry laughed. "Maybe. Maybe not. But none of us are very large. I think we'll manage."

They found an empty compartment on the nearest car and waited for everyone else to find them. Luna was first, sitting in her quiet way next to Ginny. Then Hermione came in, talking about one of the books she'd bought and how glad she was that no one had been killed when the shelf fell. Oddly enough, Daphne came to the door, looking shy.

"Would you mind if I sat here?" she asked quietly. "I was kicked out of my cabin by Pansy."

They, of course, invited her in, and she was followed by Draco, who entered laughing. He'd just gotten into a fight with Crabbe and Goyle, only to trick them into hitting each other. Neville finally found them, dragging himself in with a black eye. Surprisingly, it was Daphne who stood in all nervousness.

"What happened?" she asked, examining his eye with care.

"I got into a fight with Blaise Zambini. He said something about my parents, and I punched him."

Harry raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You hit Blaise?"

Neville blushed but nodded. "I'm tired of letting people pushing me around."

"Good on you, mate," Ron congratulated. "It's always best to stand up for yourself."

"I don't know if I'd say always," Draco disagreed.

The two argued for a while, eventually just giving up. Hermione sat reading quietly, while Ginny, Luna, and Daphne worked out a game in the Quibbler. Harry and Neville played exploding snap for a while. The compartment turned out to be just large enough for the eight of them, which made Ginny briefly wonder what would happen as they began to get older and consequently larger.

Harry heard her unintentional query, and responded, _Don't forget, Ron, Hermione, and Draco will be prefects in fifth year._

Ginny looked up at him and stuck out her tongue. _Cheeky. Don't make me beat you, Mr. Potter._

_I might enjoy it, Mrs. Potter._

Ginny flushed to the roots of her hair. He hadn't called her Mrs. Potter in so long, she'd almost forgotten the secret thrill it gave her. Suddenly, she found she couldn't think anymore. Harry chuckled softly, drawing Ron's attention.

"Are you keeping your secret from them too?" he asked curiously.

Harry looked around. He felt he could trust everyone in the cabin, including Daphne for some reason he hadn't thought through. He glanced briefly at Ginny, who nodded, and took a deep breath.

"I guess not…" he drawled, wondering if he was making a mistake. "Ginny and I can sort of talk through our thoughts."

"That's weird," Draco said bluntly. "Is it only when you're in the same room?"

Ginny shrugged. "Not really. It worked between our houses, too."

Hermione looked thoughtful, as if she was trying to figure out a potion based on the list of ingredients. She absently twirled a strand of hair around her finger.

"Have you tested it to see how far you can be apart?" the bookish girl asked.

The two shook their heads. They hadn't tested it at all, they'd just accepted that it worked. Harry hid a grin, and his friends kept discussing his connection to the youngest Weasley.

"Does anyone else know about it?" Daphne asked curiously.

"Just our parents. We didn't think we should tell everyone," Ginny told her.

"Can you feel each other too? Like if I pinch Harry…?" Neville grinned.

Harry yelped and threw and ill-aimed punch at his friend. "Nev!"

They laughed, and Harry knew it would be alright. His and Ginny's secret was safe with their friends. The train chugged on down the tracks, growing ever closer to Hogwarts. Percy stuck his head in once to let them know they were being loud – to which they grew louder. Fred and George stopped by to ask if they were training to become sardines by bunching together like that. The witch with the treat cart was relieved of half her wares at that compartment. It was the best train ride Harry could remember in either life. Ginny obviously thought so, too, because she kept looking at him and smiling with a delight that ran quite deep into her soul.

They arrived at Hogwarts in high spirits and separated – Ginny and Luna to enter the traditional way, and the rest to the "Horseless" carriages. Harry wasn't surprised to see the thestrals, he had seen a lot of 

death in his past life. At the welcoming feast, Harry watched with a half-hidden smile as the first years trailed in to be sorted.

Ginny seemed to be the only calm one among them.

Professor McGonagall stepped forward and began to read off names. Harry didn't listen, as half of the names were unfamiliar to him. He heard the deputy headmistress call out Luna's name and focused enough to watch her walk to the front. The hat seemed to take awhile to decide, and Harry thought that was odd.

_Did it take this long last time?_ He asked Ginny.

_Actually, no…now that I think about it, it was rather quick last time._

"Ravenclaw!" the sorting hat called. Luna walked toward her new house table, and Harry could swear she looked slightly annoyed.

He didn't really think about it much more than that. Ron asked him what he was hoping to have served for dinner, and Harry laughed at how his friend's mind seemed stuck on food. Hermione was trying to convince Neville to go see Madame Pomfrey about his black eye, but unfortunately, the boy already saw it as a badge of honor for standing up for himself.

"Weasley, Ginevra," was called and Harry's undivided attention was focused on the dias.

"I thought Weasleys only had boys," someone whispered.

Ginny approached the hat calmly, with no doubt of where she would go. Harry bit his lip to keep from laughing at her brothers, who were all holding their breaths awaiting her placement.

The hat took a moment, and then called in a rather triumphant voice, "Gryffindor!"

Percy, Fred, George, and Ron were on their feet in an instant, cheering wildly, but Ginny simply smiled and took her seat next to Harry.

"And done," she said quietly to her grinning soulmate.


	6. Blue Moon

A/N: I know many of you have been trying to guess, and several have tried to figure out who the "extra help" is, and some have gotten one of them right. But the other hasn't even been mentioned! I'm glad I could give you something a little unexpected. I don't plan to abandon this fic. I like writing it. But please don't be afraid to review. I need assurances that people are reading, just as you need assurances that I won't quit writing.

A Tale of Two Destinies

_Ginny, are you awake?_

The girl blinked in the early morning light of her room at Hogwarts. After she'd yawned and gotten her bearings, she replied.

_Yes, I am now._

_Want to go for a run with me?_ Even though his words were thought, there was a distinct winsome tone to them.

Ginny laughed and told him to let her get dressed. She knew the girls in her dorm would sleep well, due to the fact that they'd never once awoken the first time when she'd nearly killed a few people. She threw some comfortable clothes on and slipped down the stairs to meet Harry.

The expression on his face was a deep happiness that she'd rarely seen on his face before they'd come back to change things. His bottle green eyes glowed from an inner fire, his haphazard black hair was shiny and healthy, and his physical form was as hale and hearty as one could ask for a twelve year old. She smirked as they exited the portrait hole on their way to the grounds.

"What?" Harry asked, confused by the look.

"I might have to watch out in a few years," she giggled. "You're going to break hearts this time."

Harry rolled his eyes. "I had thought about that, you know. You're gorgeous, and when these school boys begin to notice…"

She took a swing at him as they neared the exit. "That's not what I meant and you know it!"

Harry laughed as they stretched. He watched her for a moment. Ginny's hair was long, the coppery mass nearly to her waist, her brown eyes glittered gold. She was still in a child's body, but he could easily remember how she'd looked, and how she would look again. He sighed and stood straight.

"Let's run."

When Ron arrived for breakfast, he expected to find Harry already down and eating. When he found everyone but Harry and Ginny, he began questioning Hermione.

"I really don't know where they are, Ron," she said, slightly irritated. "As I don't bunk with either of them, I can't really keep up."

"What's got your knickers in a twist?" he snapped in return.

Luckily for him, he was saved a scathing reply by the sudden appearance of the missing persons, slightly sweaty and out of breath.

"Were you out running?" Neville asked.

"Sure," Harry replied. "It's great exercise."

"You were with Harry?" Ron asked, eying his sister.

Ginny smiled as she took a seat next to him and grabbed bacon off his plate. "Yep."

"There's plenty on the table!" he exclaimed, his hands hovering protectively over his breakfast.

Harry laughed and looked around the hall, still standing by the table. He absently nibbled on a muffin that Ginny handed him. Draco and Daphne were sitting at the Slytherin table, huddled together, talking quietly. Daphne noticed him looking, and gave a little wave.

Harry waved back, and looked around more. Luna sat by herself at the Ravenclaw table, as none of her housemates seemed to want to sit near her. Harry then glanced at his own table, with the different groups of friends sitting in small clusters. It had never occurred to him how wrong it all seemed. Sure, 

they bunked with their houses, and went to class with their houses…did they always have to sit segregated like that?

"I've got an idea for lunch," he said suddenly, squeezing between Ron and Ginny. "We should all take our plates and sit at the other tables."

Hermione seemed confused. "Aren't we supposed to sit with our houses?"

Neville looked thoughtful. "One way to find out. Oy, Percy!"

The prefect looked their way. "Yes?"

"Is there a rule that says we _have_ to sit with our houses?" Harry asked, certain if anyone knew it would be him.

The elder Weasley thought for a moment. "Not really. Though it's been tradition as one normally makes friends with those in their own house."

The "Boy Who Lived" grinned. "See? We won't even get in trouble."

"Why are we doing this?" Ron asked, hesitant.

"Look around at our friends," Harry said. "They look a bit ostracized from their own houses, and I for one don't think that's right. They need to know that we're still here for them."

"Harry's right," Ginny said, finally looking around herself. "Draco and Daphne are practically shunned by the rest of Slytherin, and poor Luna's by herself in Ravenclaw. I don't see any reason why we can't go sit by them."

"I could sit with Hannah and Justin in Hufflepuff," Neville smiled. "Then there'll be a Gryffindor at ever table."

"There you go," Harry encouraged. "And for dinner, we'll invite them all to sit at our table!"

"It'll get everyone talking," Ron said thoughtfully. "Maybe even get others up and moving."

_There's more than one way to unite people. Get them thinking of a school instead of houses within a school._ Ginny's tone was proud.

Her soulmate nudged her in the rids. _We can't wait until Riddle shows himself to try. It's going to take longer than that._

The day wore on, with students milling about in small groups or alone, and Harry spent the day watching them. Classes wouldn't start until the next day, so he had ample opportunity to observe people. He realized it was always like this. People automatically flocked to the people they had spoken to before. No one reached out on the first day. Kids liked staying with familiar things.

At lunch, the five of them gathered at their table, as usual. Once they'd all said hi and decided who was going where, they stood with their golden plates in hand. As they expected, several students and teachers looked their way. Dumbledore seemed especially interested in the actions of the five Gryffindors.

Harry and Ron made the first move, stepping directly to Draco and Daphne and making themselves comfortable. Hermione and Ginny moved to flank Luna, the redhead immediately beginning to fill her plate without the slightest glance around. Neville headed to the Hufflepuff table with a grin, while Hannah and Justin were already shifting aside to make room. Pure silence descended on the hall while the other students stared.

Finally, Harry looked up to acknowledge the look of shock on Draco's face. In a bit of a loud voice, he explained, "There's no rule that says we can't sit with our friends at meals. We checked."

Dumbledore beamed, proud of the children that had gone beyond their table, while the entire hall erupted into conversation as other kids began looking around. Ron pointed out Percy, who, surprisingly, had lifted his own plate and made his way to sit next to Penelope Clearwater. Harry and Ginny felt hopeful for her somewhat wayward brother.

Those who'd been joined all seemed to brighten as they all began talking.

"Why did you do this?" Draco whispered. "Tell me the truth."

"I don't like seeing my friends alone," Harry answered firmly. "I won't see it if I can help it."

Classes started easily after that. Meals became noisier, as students mixed and matched with increasing ease. The mixing of houses echoed into the classrooms where students in double classes no longer chose opposite sides of a room. The teachers were encouraging the change, although some more than others.

Potions class was a trial, as Severus tried to be both less hostile toward the Gryffindors, and still favor the Slytherins. It seemed to aggravate him to find that without his constant badgering, the lions seemed slightly better than his snakes at his class. But meeting Harry's eyes, he merely nodded and continued on with class. Harry, feeling emboldened, began asking questions in class.

"Sir, what happens if you do put too much mugwort in?"

At the teacher's surprised look, Ron nudged him.

"Well, Potter, the fumes would turn into a particularly strong sedative and we would all be unconscious until the room could be aired out," Severus spat. He glanced around at the shocked looks of his students. "Didn't you think there had to be a reason I kept telling you to be exact when you measured?"

Harry grinned as several of his classmates immediately checked their ingredients more closely.

The month passed with surprising quickness. Harry and Ginny had nearly forgotten about the blue moon until Neville mentioned it at breakfast.

"Tomorrow is the full moon."

Hannah Abbott, a sweet Hufflepuff student, grinned. "It's actually the second full moon of this month, which means it is a blue moon."

Ginny choked on her pumpkin juice.

_Harry!_

_I know, we'll send out an owl this afternoon._

"You all right Ginny?" Luna asked airily.

"Fine," the red haired girl gasped. "I just can't breathe pumpkin juice."

Hermione couldn't help but laugh. "Was there a question?"

They laughed, but Harry slipped away from the table early and headed to the owlery. He wrote out the two notes he and Ginny had planned out. There was a request for the two recipients to meet him in the Room of Requirement – including instructions on how to enter. Harry sent school owls so people wouldn't recognize Hedwig.

The day eeked by, until the sun went down, and Harry and Ginny disappeared. They sat waiting, until a door opened and two people entered.

"Come on in," Harry invited. "This will be easier if there aren't witnesses."

"What's going on?" the taller of the two asked sharply.

Ginny closed the door behind them. "Come in and sit."

"What's happening, Gin?" the younger of the two pleaded with his friend.

Harry and Ginny locked eyes briefly. Then Harry spoke.

"Sorry, Draco. We couldn't tell you until now. Draco Malfoy, meet Kingsley Shacklebolt. There's something we need to explain to the two of you."


	7. Memories

A Tale of Two Destinies

* * *

Kingsley Shacklebolt was in shock. He didn't know what he'd expected to hear, but he couldn't have been more surprised than he felt at that moment.

"So, if I'm to believe this, you've lived your life already, and then come back because it didn't work out?" he asked, barely trusting his own voice.

Kingsley stared at the three children in front of him, willing his anger to diminish. The blonde boy, son of Lucius Malfoy, seemed another victim of this obvious prank. Harry Potter, and his redhead friend, Ginny Weasley, certainly _acted_ sincere, even though there was no way they could be.

"Auror Shacklebolt," the girl said in a rather old, sad voice. "We do understand that this is a tremendous shock. However, we are being completely serious. Harry and I have brought the two of you together so that when certain things happen, you'll be able to make sense of them."

"What's going to happen, Gin?" Draco suddenly asked. "I know you guys wouldn't do anything bad, but…"

Harry sighed and checked his old wristwatch. "Can you trust me for five more minutes, Draco?"

The auror rubbed a weary hand across his eyes. Nearly midnight, and here he was sitting in a secret room in his old school with three very young students, waiting for something that hadn't even properly been explained. The sensible part of his brain told him he needed to leave, go home, and try to get a little sleep before going back to the auror office in the morning. But there was another part – the part that warned of impending doom – that knew he had to stay and find out what was happening.

Ginny began rubbing her arms where gooseflesh had begun to rise. "It won't be long now."

Suddenly, the world inside the Room of Requirement seemed to explode. Brilliant white light seemed to flow like water around the four occupants of the room. Somehow, even though the light was nearly blinding, Kingsley managed to see colored orbs of light gathering around him.

"Wha-?" he barely managed before the orbs shot at him.

His training as an auror proved useless as his hands and arms passed right through the orbs. When they struck his head, he fell to the floor as though dead next to the already unconscious form of Draco Malfoy.

Harry and Ginny hugged each other as they waited for their friends to awaken.

"I just hope we don't lose him," she murmured. Harry didn't have to ask which prone figure she was referring to.

He focused on Draco, clearly uncomfortable with the uncertainty. Harry hadn't wanted to think about the possibility that with knowing both lives, their young friend might decide that life would be easier without them. He wasn't as concerned about Kingsley. The man was uncomfortable with action before, but given the chance, he'd always chosen to do what was right for the wizarding community.

Time passed slowly, and finally, Draco and Kingsley began to stir. Neither Ginny nor Harry said anything while they waited for the others to assimilate.

Kingsley was the first to speak, a wry expression on his face.

"I see that you've been busy," he said, shaking his head.

"You have no idea," Harry said, sighing heavily. "We've been trying so hard to correct things, only to find they keep reverting back to the way they were."

Ginny nodded absently, watching Draco sit silently with a pale face.

"Why me, Harry?" the man asked. "If I'm remembering correctly, don't you have several close friends? And Ginny, what about your family?"

Ginny answered. "Our friends and family are going to support us regardless. Life never really changed much for them. We don't need their eyes, because they're already with us. You, Kingsley, are in a wonderful place to begin gathering information now. As a ministry employee, and trusted by most of the officials, you can be privy to things the rest of us aren't."

He nodded. "I can see that."

"Besides," Harry added, "Would you really wanted to miss the excitement?"

The auror grinned, a predatory look that only those who worked closely with him knew. Harry returned the look, remembering how Kingsley had fought like a caged tiger as long as he had the ability.

"Let's quickly discuss our options," the dark skinned man laughed.

Harry and Kingsley stepped away, going over what needed watched most at the ministry, and the young girl approached the Malfoy heir.

"Don't," he whispered.

"Oh Draco, I'm so sorry," she said, her voice low. "I'm sorry we gave you those memories, but when given the opportunity to choose someone, Harry and I honestly thought it would be best that you were one of them."

Draco's face was stricken. He covered his eyes and turned from the little girl. "After what I did to you…what I tried to do so many times…why would you befriend me now?"

Ginny sighed, hating that she'd hurt her friend. "Draco, you aren't a bad person. You never really were, despite how you tried. We wanted you to know for two reasons. One, you're smart enough to handle it. And two, you're in a good position to learn things. I'm not asking you to spy, Draco. I'm only asking you to be aware."

The blonde wiped a tear from his eye. "I don't know right now whether to hug you or hurt you. Before…well, I hated you and Harry. I was jealous of him, of his friends and how people liked him almost instantly. Now…well, we're friends, and I know now why people like him. It's going to be really hard to reconcile how I could have been."

The girl leaned in closely, until Draco had no choice but to look in her eyes. "Listen to me carefully. You might remember all that unpleasantness, but for everyone else – _it never happened_. We could have strung you up on our first meeting, but we didn't, because the awful things never happened."

He merely nodded.

"You have a chance now to be the person you wanted to be," she continued. "None of the other past has to happen. We'll work together and fix things. This time, we'll win."

Harry and Kingsley heard the exchange, and remembered how the blonde had been before. Kingsley didn't know what he was like now, but he certainly sounded different. Draco looked up into Ginny's eyes with a haunted expression.

"I have to try to make up for what I did."

The redhead couldn't stand it. She threw herself forward and hugged the boy, thinking of the previous life she now shared with him. Draco had been following his father's footsteps until they realized that Voldemort didn't really care about blood purity or wizard equality, but about personal power. In the end, the Malfoys had chosen family over power – though it had come far too late to save their lives.

"Draco, you just need to be yourself. If you show people what you really are capable of doing, then no one will associate you with that darkness."

The blonde stared at Ginny. "What of my family?"

Harry came over and sat next to him. "You know your mother and father care about you. Lucius proved once that he loved you more than following Voldemort. We'll just have to make sure there's an option other than going back to that monster."

Ginny gasped, her eyes shining. "What a wonderful thing to research! Getting rid of the dark mark!"

The two boys stared at her with a shocked look. "Ginny! You're a genius!"

Harry scooped her up and swung her in a circle. Even Draco managed to smile after that. Kingsley nodded approvingly.

"Well, I should head back," the auror said. "I will keep in touch, letting you know what can be affected."

Harry stopped and set Ginny back on her feet. "Thank you, Kingsley. I'll keep you abreast of what we discover here."

As the older man left, the three preteens seemed to yawn all at once. Ginny began giggling in the middle of her yawn, causing the boys to laugh.

"Maybe we should get to bed, too," Draco pointed out. "We'll have plenty of opportunities to talk."

"I'm glad you are our friend, Draco," Harry told him sincerely. "Despite our differences in the past, I'm glad I insisted on trying."

As they were walking out of the room, the blonde boy said softly, "So am I."

Early the next morning, Harry and Ginny met to go running, which was quickly becoming a morning habit, and found Fred and George waiting for them at the school entrance.

"What are you two doing up this early?" Ginny asked in surprise.

"We've decided to start joining you on your morning runs," Fred answered.

George nodded. "And we were wondering why you were meeting with the son of Lucius Malfoy and an auror named Kingsley Shacklebolt in a rarely used area of the school last night."

"And where you four disappeared to."

Harry and Ginny shook their heads, while Harry rhetorically asked, "Marauder's Map?"

The twins laughed, George saying, "Should have guessed you'd know about it already."

"Harry, Ginny! Wait up! I'm coming too."

Draco came around a corner, but stopped in his tracks when he saw Ginny's brothers.

"Oh…well, I can talk to the two of you later."

Harry shook his head. "You might as well come on, Draco. Fred and George already know."

The blonde boy looked angry. "You _told_ them? Harry, that's too dangerous for children!"

The Weasley twins looked at each other in surprise, then back at the three in front of them. "He's like you too? How many people are on their second chance?"

"Third," Harry and Ginny inserted simultaneously in an absent tone.

"I think we need the whole story," Fred insisted, guesturing to the open grounds.

The small group ran along the grounds, Harry and Ginny taking turns explaining what exactly transpired when the shelf fell in Flourish and Blotts, up to the point where Draco received his past memories, where he took over.

"So now I know what I did before, which is nothing like I am now, and I've decided to help by keeping an eye on the Death Eaters, pretending to be interested and similar."

Ginny frowned. "That's so dangerous, Draco."

"I know, but I'm in the best place to do that at this point. Perhaps my father will help me in the future, but right now I don't think he's ready. And until Professor Snape can play spy again. I can also start sounding out the Slytherin students. Daphne can help show there are options other than following a madman."

Fred and George were curiously quiet. They hadn't asked many questions at all, and Harry finally addressed them directly.

"Are you two all right?"

They stopped, the group stopping with them. Fred sighed. "We just can't understand…why them and not us? Or someone in your own family, at least?"

Ginny looked to Harry. This was one of her main concerns, that her family would find out and be angry with her. He patted her arm and fixed her brothers with a stern look.

"This isn't about you two. We needed someone in the aurors and the ministry to keep us updated when something happens there. That's why we chose Kingsley. We couldn't have done only one of you anyway, and then we thought of having Draco as the second person."

"I'll explain why I'm a good choice," Draco said. "Last night, I was almost angry that you put those evil memories and thoughts into my mind, but now I see. Fred, George, in my former life, I was in training to become a death eater. I attended meetings, I knew of plans. I was even given missions to help them get into the castle. I still have all those ideas they tossed around, and I can help make sure they aren't options now. I also have a free pass into the meetings, if that's a way I can help."

George rubbed the back of his neck. "So…Voldemort really is going to return?"

Ginny snorted. "Did you think we were doing all this for fun?"

They headed back toward the school, their hearts heavy and their minds racing. At the front door, the were met by the headmaster.

"Would you all please come have breakfast with me in my office?" he said with a small inviting smile.

Harry and Ginny exchanged a look.

_Harry…the diary. We haven't thought about it at all this year!_

Harry's face paled. _Someone's had it nearly a month unchecked!_

The five children followed the headmaster into the school, subdued and pensive.

* * *

A/N: I hope you liked it. If you did, review! If you didn't, review! You all know I live for your reviews. My goal is 350 reviews. Next chapter, we start trying to discover who has the diary, and I'd love to hear who you think has it.


	8. Conjecture

A Tale of Two Destinies

The office of Albus Dumbledore was a chaotic, yet comfortable place. Harry still sat protectively near Ginny, watching the headmaster carefully.

"Would anyone care for a lemon sherbert?" Albus offered in a kindly voice.

"No thank you," Harry and Ginny replied instantly, followed shortly by Draco and the twins. Albus' mouth turned down a fraction for just an instant, then he nodded and smiled.

"I've noticed you going out in the mornings for a while now, Harry," the older man said. "What are you and Miss Weasley doing out on the grounds every day?"

"Running," Harry answered.

The headmaster appeared shocked. "Running? Whatever for?"

Ginny smiled innocently. "We like to run."

Draco and the twins were confused, as they didn't know the arguments that Harry and Ginny had been having with the headmaster. However, being as they understood more than other people would have, they knew enough to stay as silent as possible.

"I was wondering if you'd given any more thought to what we discussed earlier this year?" Albus asked cryptically.

"Of course we have," Harry nodded. "Are you ready to share why Voldemort wants me dead?"

Everyone but Ginny gave a small jerk of surprise.

Draco turned to him, "But Harry, you already…"

A quick look from Ginny quelled his statement, but not before a triumphant twinkle gleamed in the Headmaster's eye.

"Do go on, Mr. Malfoy," he encouraged. "What is it that Mr. Potter knows?"

A mask settled over the boy's features. "Nothing that I could possibly share without his permission, Headmaster. With all due respect, it's not my life and therefore I don't make the decisions that Harry should."

A flash of annoyance crossed Albus' features briefly, but then he turned to Fred and George.

"I also needed to talk to the two of you," he said, with a sorrowful look. "I understand that the two of you like to experiment on the first years at the beginning of each school year. I'm afraid that we cannot let unlicensed amateurs conduct experiments at Hogwarts. The teachers and the board have all agreed that the only experiments that should be performed to our students should be from licensed professionals and only with full knowledgeable consent."

To Harry, George looked as upset as he had in their previous life when his twin had been killed, but now Fred sat beside him with an identical expression on his freckled face. He felt protective for his near-brothers, and began defending them at once.

"Headmaster, that's not fair," he insisted. "Fred and George would never try anything on a student that was dangerous, and you know it. Why the restriction now?"

Albus looked archly at him, and Harry felt like screaming in frustration. "I believe it is important to protect my students, my boy. It's for their own good."

Furiously trying to rein in his temper, Harry stood, glaring at the old man.

"I believe we're finished."

He stalked from the headmaster's office, wondering why the headmaster was acting so strangely when he'd always been so kind and thoughtful. He began wondering if his memories of the man were as rosy as he pictured them, or if he merely had seen the manipulation before. Suddenly, he found himself surrounded by Ginny, Draco and the twins.

Without waiting for one of them to speak first, Harry grinned at Fred and George. "There is a loophole."

"What's the loophole?" Fred asked.

"You start a genuine business, and he can't say anything. You'll be a licensed professional."

Draco laughed.

"They'd never give us a business license," George protested. "We're just kids and we've got no start up capital."

Harry grinned. "All you need is a financial backer and you'll be off and running."

"That's right," Ginny added. "Gringotts handles business licenses, and they don't care about ages, only profit margins."

The twins looked thoughtfully at each other, then Fred laughed and smacked his head.

"Will we be a hit?" they asked together.

Harry, Ginny, and even Draco grinned. "Oh yeah."

"Who was our silent partner?" George asked. "Although, I might know."

Harry grinned and raised a hand. "It wasn't for another two years, but we might be able to jump up a bit on that."

"Can I get in on that?" Draco asked suddenly.

They all looked at him in surprise.

"What?" the Malfoy heir laughed. "I'm given anything I want, which means I've been saving my extra money for years. I could buy out Zonko's if I wanted."

"Oh, Draco," Ginny teased. "Leave Fred and George something to dream about."

The twins looked delirious.

"Could we actually do it?" Fred stuttered.

"Become that big?" his twin whispered.

Suddenly Harry and Draco each found themselves caught in a jig with a Weasley twin. The five kids laughed at outsmarting a large group of adults, when Fred suddenly sobered.

"Why?" he asked Harry. "Why would you do this now, when you could do it later?"

Harry's face became grim, and everyone in the hall was reminded that he was no average twelve year old boy.

"Dumbledore's only doing this to get me to tell him what I know. He knows something's going on, and he's figured out that you lot know. He's been after me since Ginny and I performed the bonding spell."

Draco's jaw dropped. "You two are bonded?"

Ginny nodded. "Don't let that information slip, Draco. It was only for communication purposes. Harry and I wanted to be in contact at all times. It was dangerous, but now that it's done it's the simplest form of communication we could get."

"_Carus Iunctus_?" the blonde asked curiously.

"How did you know?" the other four gasped.

He blushed. "Mother told me once that a Malfoy performs that charm on their wedding day, so that their spouse can never end the marriage. It's supposed to help maintain a solid image to the public, but I always thought it was because Malfoys generally like having control over their spouses."

"That explains a lot," Ginny said. "Anyway. So you know about this spell?"

"We've got a whole book on it in the library at home," he said. "I'll tell Mum I want to know more about it and see if she'll send the book here. There's a section about testing to see if you've chosen the right person before trying to cast, but I don't guess you would need that part."

"It might be useful in the future," Ginny noted. "Once the war begins, if we can pair people with their soulmates, and bond them, it would make the lines of communication a lot easier."

The four boys exchanged looks of chagrin for not thinking of that part.

"Drop it," Ginny warned. "I'm a girl, I think differently."

The sound of someone walking down the corridor sent them all scurrying off for breakfast, minds racing.

As the five of them entered the great hall, Harry instantly began wondering about which student in the vast school, if any, had the diary of Tom Riddle in their possession. He didn't realize that he had shared the thought with Ginny, until he heard her response.

_We should talk to Draco, maybe Lucius mentioned the diary. Odds are that it's one of our close friends or family._

_Good thinking, _he approved. _Watch everyone over lunch and maybe we'll get a clue._

They sat with their friends, keeping an eye out for any signs they might have missed.

"All right then?" Harry asked Ron.

Ron snorted. "Been out running again?"

A brief frown crossed the black haired boy's face. "Yeah, Fred and George and Draco came out and ran with us this morning."

Ron shot an annoyed look at his best friend. "Couldn't wake me up?"

"I didn't think you'd want to," Harry admitted. "You're always telling me that you don't know why anyone would get up and go out on the grounds."

"Never really asked me, though, did you?"

Harry felt awful. He had been so focused on finally having Ginny at Hogwarts and getting ready for Kingsley and Draco to receive their memories. Here he'd come back, determined not to let anyone come between him and his friends and He was driving a wedge in himself!

"Ron, look," he said quietly. "I'm sorry I didn't ask you. I would like it if you went running with us."

Ron sighed. "I'm sorry mate. I don't really want to get up that early in the morning, but I did want to be asked. I guess I'm just jealous of Ginny."

Ginny was talking to Luna and Hermione at that time, and wasn't feeling much better than her soulmate.

"Last year we talked a lot, Ginny," Luna said, her voice rather dull and flat. "This year, I barely see you, except at meals and in class."

"Yes, and I've been so looking forward to having another girl in the group, and felt really comfortable with you when we first met, but I hardly get to talk to you at all," Hermione complained.

"I'm sorry," Ginny gasped. "I had no idea that you were that upset."

Hermione looked extremely put out, and Luna merely picked at her food.

"Girls, I promise," Ginny pleaded with them, reaching a hand out to both girls. "Saturday will be only for girls. The three of us, and Daphne and Hannah. We'll have a picnic and talk about how stupid the boys are. Deal?"

The older girl looked at her first. "I'd really like that."

"Don't forget us again, Ginny," Luna warned with a smile.

_A lot of our friends are acting a little out of character,_ Harry informed the female Weasley.

_That's sort of our fault, though. Isn't it?_

The table was interrupted by the arrival of Neville, flushed and angry.

"Neville? What's wrong?" Hermione asked.

The boy sat at the table and looked around. "Lockhart is a bloody moron."


	9. Whispers in the Walls

A/N: Yay! It's good to be able to write again. I'm so glad you all liked my rather short last chapter. With everything that's been happening, I was beginning to think I'd never be able to get back to the story. Luckily, this wasn't the case. There's a new goal of 450 reviews, but whether or not I update the story isn't resting on it. I just like to know whether you all like the direction we're going. New poll – Who do you think has the diary?

A Tale of Two Destinies

The group of preteens all looked at Neville in surprise. They'd never heard him so angry, especially at a teacher.

"What's wrong with Lockhart?" Hermione asked her eyes wide. The bushy haired girl still hadn't been able to get past the fact that he was a teacher, despite his many shortcomings. She didn't have the outrageous crush on him that she'd had previously, but she couldn't quite bring herself to outright insult him.

Neville glowered at his breakfast. "He gave me a bloody detention for correcting him in front of a first year. I can't help it if he got the restorative properties of dragonsbane wrong."

"What a creep," Ginny frowned. "One of us could get detention to serve with you, so at least you wouldn't have to do something stupid like answer his fan mail alone."

Neville brightened momentarily, and then slumped. "I couldn't ask one of you to do that."

Harry laughed. "We'll make it a game. First one to get detention with Lockhart wins."

"What do we win?" Ron asked suspiciously.

Fred and George grinned. "We happen to have a whole case of fireworks that we will donate as a prize for that noble cause."

"This is ridiculous!" Hermione snapped, standing. "Even if there are inaccuracies in his books, he is still a professor. I'm not about to blow my entire academic career for the sake of a stupid game!"

She stomped away, leaving the others gaping after her.

"Well, I'm still in," Ron said after a moment. "Anything to show that pompous arse that we aren't fooled by his idiocy."

Harry couldn't help but laugh about it.

Later that day, Ginny was heading to DADA when she heard Luna's voice in a hall. Approaching quietly, she noted her blonde friend talking to a few Slytherins.

"Thanks for telling me," Luna said. "You'll be greatly rewarded when it's time."

"I think maybe you should have been a Slytherin," one of the other children said. "You're awfully cunning."

Luna shrugged. "I did try to convince the hat to place me in either Slytherin or Gryffindor, but I guess I wasn't persuasive enough. I need to head to class though."

A Slytherin boy patted her shoulder. "Keep us updated, Luna. I'd love to know what happens."

With a smile and a wave, Luna entered the DADA classroom. Ginny stood still a moment longer, heart beating wildly.

_Harry, Luna's making deals with Slytherins._

He didn't answer, caught as he was in a rather unexpected argument between Neville and Ron.

"If I'm going to stick my neck out for you, I'd like to know there's a little loyalty backing me up," the redhead snarled.

"I never asked you to go try to get a detention, Ron," Neville shot back. "You came up with that idea yourself. I can deal with my own problems."

"So you aren't going to back me up?"

Harry stepped between them. He could see that they would come to blows in another moment.

"Mates! Stop!"

The two boys paused and looked at Harry, waiting for an answer as to why they shouldn't fight. Harry felt at an impasse.

"We're all friends, right? Why are you going at each other like this?"

Neville glared at Ron. "He wanted me to play back-up in his plan to get detention. I've already got one and don't want to risk getting two."

"I thought I could get a little help from a friend," Ron snapped. "I guess I was wrong."

Harry shook his head. "Ron, it's not fair to ask Neville. Why don't I help you? Then you get the back-up and he doesn't have to risk a second detention?"

Ron turned to glare at Harry as well. "Just taking his side then? Fine."

Harry watched his red haired friend stalk away and turned to Neville.

"I could have handled it," Neville frowned. "No one asked you to interfere."

The black haired boy stood alone and confused for a moment before heading into class.

Later that night, Harry and Ginny were sitting in front of the dying fire in the Gryffindor common room, talking about their friends.

"One of those four has the diary," Ginny said fiercely. "I can feel it."

He nodded, staring into the shrinking flames. "But which one?"

"Hermione got really angry at us for suggest getting detention on purpose."

"Ron's getting really keyed up over the loyalty of his friends."

"Luna's angry at her house, and making deals with Slytherins for something."

"Neville was all mad at me for coming between him and Ron during the fight."

Ginny pursed her lips in thought. "What's worse…they could all either be signs, or easily explained."

Harry looked sharply at her. "What do you mean, easily explained?"

"Think about it, love. Hermione's been really good at relaxing and letting things go, but at some point, she'd almost be bound to swing back to her old self and have an attack of the rules."

He nodded, watching her in wonder. "You're right! And Ron could just be upset that we've been spending a lot of time together and lashing out at everyone else!"

"Luna wanted to be with us, or Draco and Daphne, but instead, she was placed into a house all alone, and they don't really appreciate her."

"And Neville's really been trying to prove he isn't a coward lately, and I could have insulted him by trying to keep him and Ron from fighting."

The two of them looked at each other for a long moment.

"I don't know how I thought I could do all this again," Harry whispered.

"_You_ aren't," Ginny insisted firmly. "_We_ are. And we'll get through this. We know what we're up against, and how to combat it. And we have Draco and Kingsley to help us."

"I sure hope you're right."

The sigh that emanated from the young boy was one of an adult. He wanted to say something to Ginny, but at that moment a silvery-white figure floated into the common room.

"Good evening, Sir Nicholas," Ginny greeted the ghost. "I hope the evening's going well for you."

The Gryffindor ghost turned a sad face to them. "Not exactly. I was denied entrance into the Headless Hunt once again."

Harry felt a surge of déjà vu. "Because your head is still hanging there?"

The ghost nodded. "Dead five hundred years, and they deny me for such a small inconvenience."

"Has it been five hundred years already?" Ginny asked politely.

Sir Nicholas nodded, brightening a little. "Actually, I'm having a small get-together in honor. If you'd like to come."

"On Halloween?" Harry asked, already knowing the answer.

At Sir Nicholas' nod, Ginny laid a hand on Harry's thigh. "We'll be there."

The ghost floated away, clearly happy, and Harry frowned softly.

"What's wrong?" she asked, seeing the frown.

"The world just keeps plugging along, whether I change something or not…"

She suddenly hit his leg forcefully, and he looked at her in shock. Ginny was scowling at him ferociously, and he actually considered scooting away.

"Idiot," she hissed, but without malice. "When the first basilisk attack happened, where were you?"

"Coming back from Nick's Death Day…oh," Harry whispered, realizing why she'd said they would go.

"Yes, oh. If we're quick, maybe we'll catch the person and end it quickly."

Harry hugged her tightly. "I love you."

She smiled gently. "I know. I love you, too."

On Halloween, Harry and Ginny told their friends about the Death Day party, asking if anyone wanted to come with. Harry was hoping they'd make it obvious who was in possession of the diary, but they did the exact opposite.

Hermione refused first. "I've already taken too much time away from my studies. I'm going back to the common room and working on that parchment that Professor Snape assigned us."

"I have a rare plant coming in from Professor Sprout tonight, and I need to pot it as quickly as possible," Neville said. "But tell Nick I said happy death day."

Harry grinned at the stocky boy, then turned to Ron. "How about you mate? Are you going to leave me to the ghosts alone?"

"You won't be alone, Harry," Ron replied, shoveling a forkful of potatoes in his mouth. "You'll have Ginny. Besides, the twins wanted my help with something tonight."

"That leaves Fred and George out, then," Ginny laughed.

Luna smiled in a dreamy sort of way. "You'll have to excuse me also, Ginny. I thought I'd look for bursnaps in the dungeons. They're easier to spot on Halloween than other nights."

Harry resisted the urge to sigh in frustration and reached out to Ginny.

_At this rate we'll never figure it out._

Ginny said nothing in reply, but he could see her irritation.

They headed to Nick's party, each settled in their own thoughts. The gathering of ghosts was exactly how Harry remembered it, though, Ginny seemed a little green.

"Harry," she whispered in a strangled tone. "Why is all the food rotted?"

"It increases the flavor," he shrugged. "One ghost told me they could almost taste it like that."

She stared at the table full of spoiled food and shuddered. "I'm going to be sick, can we leave soon?"

He smiled indulgently and searched out Sir Nicholas to explain that she wasn't feeling well. They were heading back toward the great hall to get something for dinner, when Harry stopped dead in his tracks.

"_Let me rip…let me kill…"_

"Gin, the basilisk!" he hissed. "We've got to follow it and find out who's controlling it!"

They took off running, following the sounds that only Harry could hear. Suddenly, Professor Snape appeared in front of them.

"What are you two doing, wandering about the corridors when everyone's at the feast?"

"We were at Sir Nicholas' Death Day party," Harry panted, not wanting to lie to the potions master this time. "I heard something moving around and we went to find it."

"It would look suspicious if you were found up here."

Ginny's mouth formed a perfect "o" of surprise. "Professor! Did you notice anyone else missing?"

Harry could have kissed her. What a wonderful idea!

"None of your little gang was there," he said, perplexed.

"Damn," the two not-quite-children swore.

"What's this?" the sound of the caretaker's shout echoed through the halls. The echo was promptly swallowed in the sounds of houses heading back through to their common rooms.

Snape and the two children arrived on the scene the same time as everyone else. Harry's blood froze when he saw the message on the wall.

"_Mudbloods beware! The Chamber has been opened!"_

The only one of their friends who was nearby was Draco Malfoy, who looked absolutely sick.

"Harry," he said, moving closer to the boy-who-lived and his soulmate. "I'm so sorry."

Harry and Ginny turned to him in shock. Surely Draco didn't have the diary – Lucius wouldn't give it to his own son.

_Would he?_


	10. Petrified and Hiding

A/N: Wow. So many of you are anxiously awaiting this chapter! I only hope I don't disappoint. Here's a hint for you. The person who has the diary is someone with a lot to learn from the experience. insert evil grin Let me know how you're liking the story progression!

A Tale of Two Destinies

Ginny immediately drew Draco closer and stared into his eyes. "What do you mean you're sorry?"

"I had forgotten all about the diary. Father said he put it into someone's cauldron the day the shelf fell, and I'd forgotten all about it!" he was nearly hyperventilating.

Severus was staring at the boy who was indeed his godson with a look of horror on his face. "Not the diary of Tom Riddle?"

Harry swore under his breath. "Quiet, both of you. Draco, whose cauldron?"

The blonde could only shake his head. "I should have paid more attention."

Ginny frowned at the writing, feeling the gooseflesh steal along her limbs as she remembered that time, so long ago, when she'd been under the memory's sway and no one had noticed. Harry watched her for a moment, and then turned to Draco.

"Go with Professor Snape, find a pensieve and search your memory. Perhaps you'll find a clue as to who has the damn thing."

Ginny turned eyes and looked at the potions master with eyes so cold and so haunted that the man nearly felt he'd be sick.

"Find who has it," she whispered. "Don't let them get to the point I was at."

Harry gritted his teeth. He felt the pain he felt coming from her, and he felt the way she was drawing into herself.

"I'm taking Ginny to the common room," he said in a tight voice.

Several minutes sitting in front of the fire rubbing Ginny's back passed before she began speaking to him through their link.

_I can feel it and see it…all of it all over again._

Harry's throat constricted, and he stared straight ahead into the flames. _I know it's hard, Gin, but we'll find out who has it._

Ginny sighed heavily and hugged her knees. _I was so frightened, thinking that no one would be able to save me, knowing I would die. I don't want anyone else to feel that._

Harry didn't even notice Hermione, Neville, Ron and the twins approaching. Hermione started to reach for Ginny's shoulder – seeing that she was upset – but George stopped her.

"Give them a moment to work through this. Ginny's a bit upset."

Hermione glanced at George in surprise. Why was he acting so mature? And what exactly had upset Ginny? Something was definitely going on.

_We're going to need to turn the Room of Requirement into a training room, Harry,_ Ginny informed her soulmate.

_Yes, and we're going to have to think about letting go of some of our magic. Being average students is all well and good, but we have a war to win._

Ginny didn't speak, she only nodded. Each sat in their own thoughts for a moment, before Ginny said aloud, "You can release Hermione now, George. She'll explode soon without asking those questions."

"How?" was all the bushy haired girl could ask as she seated herself next to Ginny.

"That's the one answer I can't give," she replied. "I'm heading up to bed."

Fred stopped her at the bottom of the stairs. "Why does Snape know about you and Harry, but not Dumbledore?"

"Snape's a legilimens," Ginny told her brother quietly. "He can read my mind, and I've only just started learning occlumency. I never learned it before like Harry. Besides, we're going to need him later on. Unlike you and George, who are going to be loyal no matter what. Don't forget to send off for the papers for your joke shop."

With that, the red haired girl went to bed, her head aching from crying.

The days passed, and Ginny grew more upset that they hadn't found the possessor of the diary. She, Harry, and Draco threw themselves into training whenever they could get away from the others. Ron grew clingy with Harry and Hermione both, not wanting them to talk to anyone but him, and growing angry whenever Harry spoke privately with Ginny, or Hermione wanted to go to the library to study. Neville grew restless, spending all of his time with Justin, Hannah, and Luna out of the Gryffindor common room. Hermione seemed to always be in the library, though Harry couldn't tell if it was an obsession to learn or just a pose to get away from Ron.

November began, and Oliver Wood seemed to foam at the mouth due to Harry's distraction from quidditch. Their first game was on November 7, and Harry was looking forward to playing this game without a cursed bludger out to break his neck. Until the game began.

Lucius Malfoy had bought his son a place on the quidditch team by purchasing several top model brooms. Up in the air, Draco hovered near Harry.

"I told him I didn't want to play on the house team," the blonde said glumly. "But he insisted it would be good for my image. I can't believe what a swotty little snot I once was."

"Almost was," his friend corrected. "That past is only in our heads now."

"I'm glad you don't think I was out to outdo you or something. How's Ginny?"

Harry looked over toward the stands, where Ginny's pale face stood out to him like a shining light. "I don't know. She says she's fine, and she's doing well with the occlumency, but she's just not herself."

"Harry! Look for the snitch!" Oliver screamed maniacally.

"Talk to you later, Draco."

"Good luck, Harry."

The two second years searched the field almost lazily. Neither had any burning desires to thrash the other, and Harry had to admit, the game lost some of its appeal without a personal vendetta out. Perhaps next time Slytherin and Gryffindor played, they could make a wager or something to drive them. Suddenly, Harry saw the snitch and began streaking toward it, not noticing that Draco was diving after it as well. Harry's fingers closed around the fluttering gold ball seconds before Draco crashed into him. Luckily they were only about twenty feet from the ground, so their fall wasn't that dangerous. But when Harry opened his eyes a moment later, Oliver was trying to convince Madame Hooch that the Slytherin seeker had done it on purpose.

"No he didn't," Harry immediately said, sitting up and wincing. "It was an accident. Is Draco okay?"

"I'm fine, Harry. But I think I might have broken your arm."

Harry opened his fingers, the pain intense, and showed the snitch. He grinned, despite the sweat on his brow. "I win…and I'm pretty sure you did break it."

Ginny burst through the crowd. "Harry! Are you all right?"

"Step aside please," the voice of Gilderoy Lockhart broke through the crowd. "I can fix it!"

"No!" about a dozen voices cried out.

Thankfully, McGonagall got to Harry first and led him away from whatever idiocy the so-called Defense professor would have done. Harry was extremely grateful to not have to spend the night regrowing bones. Madame Pomfrey did want him to stay the night, just to make sure there weren't any complications. Harry was awake when Colin was brought in, his camera still steaming.

He pretended to be asleep, knowing that the boy was on his way to take a picture of Harry in the infirmary. He grit his teeth, all the more determined to find that thrice accursed diary and destroy it.

The next morning, when he joined his friends for breakfast, Harry told them that Colin was in the infirmary, petrified. Ginny's eyes filled with tears and Harry hugged her, while watching the others. Hermione looked both frightened and thoughtful. Neville looked absolutely terrified of whatever was capable of petrifying a student. Hannah and Justin seemed shocked, but Luna merely stared dreamily into space. Ron stabbed at his food angrily. Draco wouldn't meet Harry's eyes, still blaming himself for the actions of his father and the fact that none of his memories showed which cauldron Lucius had put the diary into. Daphne shook her head in confusion.

"Petrified? Frozen stiff? Not dead, just like a statue?"

"Yes," Harry confirmed. "It kind of looked like he'd tried to take a picture of whoever or whatever it was, and saw it through his camera."

Daphne looked as though she'd burst. "But that sounds like a basilisk!"

Nine people turned to stare at her in varying degrees of shock and horror.

"How does that sound like a basilisk?" Ginny asked suspiciously.

Daphne blushed deeply. "I'm not proud of it, but my family once bred basilisks for use as guards and a huge profit from their venom. We don't do it now, since the restrictions on those things are harsher, but my family has generations of knowledge on the creatures. If you see one straight on, you die instantly, but if you look at them indirectly, you're only petrified. You said Colin tried to take a picture? He saw the thing through the camera."

Hermione gaped. "You're right! And if a basilisk is getting around in the school, it's probably going through the pipes."

"So all we need to figure out is where this chamber is, and someone can go in and kill the ruddy thing," Justin added.

"Sure… that's _all _we have to do," Neville muttered sarcastically. "Not to mention figuring out who's behind all of it and trying to kill the students."

Luna spoke up for the first time, "Not all the students. Salazar Slytherin left the school because of a disagreement about who should be allowed in. His idea was that only the pureblood wizards had a right to education, and so it's only natural to think whoever opened his chamber and set loose his pet would be after the muggleborns and halfbloods."

While everyone was gaping at the Ravenclaw, Draco asked, "Where did you learn all that?"

She stared at him pointedly, quite differently than her usual manner. "I'm a Ravenclaw, Draco. I read."

The ten students set about studying the school grounds in their spare time. Taking walks, searching for hidden places. Draco, Harry and Ginny wanted desperately to find a teacher and blurt out everything, but they would have no proof that whoever was doing it was being controlled if they couldn't find the diary. They "helped" their friends look, always watching for a sign of who might have it. The school buzzed rumors for a week or so, but they died away as usual. Then about mid-December, the announcement about the dueling club went up.

There wasn't any animosity between Harry and Draco or Professor Snape this time around, and he had avoided Lockhart like the plague. So Harry sat off to one side, conferring quietly with the Malfoy heir. He wasn't prepared for Lockhart to search him out for demonstration – although he admitted to himself that he probably should have.

"Now, Harry, my boy," the wizarding world's golden boy grinned. "I'm going to cast a spell at you, and you attempt to block it."

Images flashed through Harry's mind of what damage the man could do with a simple disarming spell, and he cringed. He shot a quick imploring look to his group of friends, and Draco immediately stood.

"Professor is that really fair?" he asked. "After all…you've traveled the world and Harry's only twelve. Perhaps one of his classmates should really be the one to shoot a spell at him."

The jaunty grin slipped a bit as a quick glare was flung at young Malfoy. It disappeared a moment later and he nodded.

"Perhaps you're right, my lad. It wouldn't do to see two such celebrities as Harry Potter and Gilderoy Lockhart dueling. Any volunteers?"

Everyone's hand went up nearly instantly, but the calculating look on Severus' face told Harry instantly what he was going to do. Harry knew he didn't want to duel the person his potions professor was going to choose.

"I believe I should choose the other duelist, Lockhart," he cut in smoothly. "A first year shouldn't be too hard to block. Ginny Weasley, come up here, please."

The boy-who-lived groaned and wiped a hand over his face. His once and future bride smiled serenely at him as she stepped up onto the dais.

_Are we ready to stop pretending?_ She asked him through their private link.

He shook his head. _Not entirely. Keep to spells from Hogwarts texts. We have an excuse for reading those._

Ginny stuck her tongue out at him playfully.

"Now, you face your opponent and bow," the blonde buffoon tried to explain. The two duelists tuned him out, eager to begin the mock battle. Neither of them had done much magical training lately, preferring to get their bodies in shape instead. Their bond crackled through them and the air surrounding them, drawing the attention of anyone not staring already.

Harry bowed solemnly from the waist, his eyes never leaving Ginny's while she sunk into a graceful half-curtsey. Without being told, they snapped into a wands-ready pose, waiting to be told to begin.

Snape smirked at the dumbfounded look on Lockhart's face and pronounced, "Attack!"

"_Tarantellegra!_"

_"Rictumsempra!"_

_"Stupefy!"_

_"Nox!"_

The other students gasped as spells began zinging across the stage. Harry and Ginny were moving faster than they'd ever seen the two go, shouting spells that the fifth and sixth year students were learning. A stinging hex from the youngest Weasley left a scar on the rock wall directly where Harry's head would have been were it not for a well-timed roll to the left. A particularly strong jet of water took the girl to her knees, but she retaliated with back to back freezing and banishing spells, sending daggers of ice flying at Harry. He took advantage of her pride in her attack, and managed a tickling charm on her side. Laughing until she was out of breath, she held up a hand.

"I yield!"

The applause was deafening, and Lockhart's face was a decidedly unattractive shade of green.

"Ten points from Gryffindor," he announced coldly. "For showboating and the fact that neither of you used the shield charm which was the point of this demonstration."

Angry growls filled the room. Severus Snape became a champion for the school in a single moment, when he smirked coldly at the Defense professor and announced, "Twenty points – _each_ – to Harry Potter and Ginevra Weasley for reading ahead in their studies and putting it to good use."

Everyone began talking at once, and a snarling voice shouted, "_Serpensortia!_"

Screams filled the air as a huge green snake flew at Harry and Ginny. Harry told the snake not to attack immediately, drawing curious stares from everyone involved. But when Ginny hissed at the snake to sleep, the room went silent and even Harry stared in shock.

_I might have kept a few things from you, dear… _she shot at him with a slight gasp of horror.


	11. Christmas Coming

A Tale of Two Destinies

Harry took Ginny's arm and quickly led her out of the room and toward the Gryffindor common room. Ginny spent the entire walk trying to explain everything.

_Don't be angry with me, Harry._

_I'm not, _he insisted. _ Why didn't you tell me you spoke parseltongue?_

She flushed a deep red. _I meant to. I only discovered it myself about a week or two before we came to school._

_Is it left from the diary? Or did I share it with the bond?_

_I think it was you, Harry. If it was the diary, I'm sure it would have manifested earlier._

He nodded bleakly. _We need to figure out who sent that spell._

Ginny's grim expression mirrored his own. There was a slight twinkle in her eyes though.

_That's not our only problem._

_What else?_

_I have to figure out what addled your brain and made you cast _Nox_ in our duel. What was _that_ supposed to do?_

Harry gaped at her before growling and tickling her. It was on the sight of them laughing and rolling on the floor that Hermione walked in.

"Glad to see you're taking this seriously," she said in clipped tones.

They scrambled to their feet, Ginny smiling sheepishly. "Sorry. Harry and I were discussing how we both could have become parselmouths."

"You two really are parselmouths? This is bad," Hermione moaned.

"Why?" the bonded pair asked.

"Salazar Slytherin was a parselmouth," she said. "He was known for it. Everyone will think one of you is his heir or something."

"We've discussed it, and Ginny and I think we know why we can talk to snakes."

The bushy haired girl looked up inquisitively.

"When Voldemort attacked me, he must have left some of his power in me. I probably got it from him, and Ginny probably got it from me."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Oh! The bond!"

They shushed her as more people streamed into the common room. Ron walked up, looking slightly surly.

"You never showed me how to do all that stuff," he complained to Harry.

Harry shook his head, trying to placate Ron's bruised ego. "I never showed Ginny. You know how much we read."

Ron didn't look convinced. "I'm going to bed. I'll see you in the morning, Harry."

"Goodnight, mate," the raven haired boy said.

Hermione shook her head. "He's getting to be so self-centered."

"Lay off, Hermione," Harry said gently. "He's jealous of Ginny and I, and he's trying to live up to five older brothers."

Hermione's eyes filled with tears. "You always take his side!"

She ran off toward the girls' staircase, her two friends staring after her like she was insane.

_That was weird._ The two thought as one.

The whole school buzzed with whispers about Harry and Ginny, ranging from the eerily near-truth that the two of them were time travelers come to take over the school – to the way out there rumors that Harry was the son of Voldemort and Ginny was his dark queen. Fred and George led them around, proclaiming they were joint heirs of Slytherin, and they could petrify anyone with an evil look. 

Harry found it to be significantly less stressful than the last time he'd been accused. Justin sat next to him at breakfast one day, asking if he thought being a parseltongue would help them figure out who was the Heir of Slytherin. They spoke for a while before Ernie Macmillan approached.

"Justin, why are you talking to him?"

He looked up in surprise. "Harry and I talk all the time. We're friends."

Ernie glanced distastefully at Harry and Ginny, who sat on Harry's other side. Harry felt himself getting angry that the look was directed at Ginny.

_Behave, Harry. _Ginny directed at him. _We both know he's full of hot air. Don't act like a twelve year old._

Harry flashed a grateful smile at her.

"_Everyone_ is talking about that snake incident, Justin," Ernie explained as though his housemate was slow. "They're all pretty sure that Harry or Ginny is the heir of Slytherin."

"That's got to be the dumbest thing I've ever heard," Draco snapped, drawing the attention of others. "If one of them was _Slytherin_'s heir, don't you think they'd be in _Slytherin_'s house?"

Ernie's resolve wavered for a second. "They're just trying to throw us all off."

"You're mental, mate," Justin said resolutely. "Harry and Ginny like Colin. He's a friend. They wouldn't attack him. Plus, Harry's mum was a muggleborns, and so's Hermione. They obviously don't dislike them. Not to mention Harry defeated Voldemort!"

A gasp shuddered through the people eavesdropping. Ernie's face scrunched slightly and he huffed.

"Fine! Don't listen to me! But don't come crying to me when he turns out to be evil."

Harry waited about three seconds after the Hufflepuff stalked away before he started laughing. Everyone who knew him soon joined in.

Harry turned to Ginny. "Ooh...I'm a scary dark wizard!"

"You can't frighten me!" Ginny shot back, giggling. "I'm an evil witch queen!"

Ron glowered at them both. "I don't think it's all that funny, guys. They're saying you only defeated Voldemort so you could take his place, and that Sirius has been training you in the dark arts."

"So?" Harry quipped. "People can believe whatever they like. I'm not evil. Ginny's not evil. Our friends know it, and that's what really matters. The rest of the world can go hang itself."

"Hear, hear!" Fred and George crowed.

Ron still frowned, unconvinced. Harry watched his friend for a moment. What had happened to Ron lately? Was he so jealous of Harry that he was beginning to resent him? Where was the closeness he and Ginny had once shared?

Thinking of Ron drew him into thinking of their other friends, old and new. Neville hardly spent any time with them, always talking to Hannah. Harry thought he knew why the two who'd been married before death in his previous life would start spending time together, but that didn't explain Neville's sudden propensity to anger. The slightest thing would set him off, and Harry didn't understand that at all. Neville had always been such a reserved person before.

Hermione was nose-in-the-books, as she ever was, but now she would burst into tears whenever they disagreed about anything. She was a complete bafflement. Justin and Hannah seemed the same as they'd always been, though he'd never really known them that well. Luna was more calculating than spaced out. And Daphne he still didn't know well enough to make a decision on.

Harry thought about his friends, narrowing it to the four most likely to have the diary. Lucius had to have slipped it into one of their cauldrons at Flourish and Blotts, but which? They all seemed to be acting out of character.

Ginny nudged him, pointing in the direction of the headmaster. He was watching them unabashedly, not even averting his gaze when Harry met it head on.

"We're going to have to talk to him soon," Ginny sighed.

Harry nodded, not liking the fact. The arrival of the owls overhead disrupted his thoughts. He grinned, seeing a letter from Sirius. He scanned it quickly, not caring that Ginny read over his shoulder.

"Hey, guys, listen! My godfather wants to take all of us on a trip for Christmas holidays. He wants us to spend holidays in Australia!"

Ron was also opening a letter and scowled. "Good thing. Mum and Dad are going to Romania to see Charlie – alone."

Harry grinned at him, hoping to get him looking forward to getting away from the school. "Good. Australia wouldn't be as fun without my best mate along."

Ron's expression took a hopeful turn.

"Sirius didn't mean _all_ of us, did he?" Draco clarified.

"He said '…and however many friends you want to invite.' And he usually means that," Ginny supplied, still reading.

"I'm inviting all of you," Harry insisted. "If your parents will let you: Ron, Hermione, Draco, Luna, Neville, Daphne, Justin, Hannah – even the twins!"

"And me," Ginny added with a smile.

"Always you, Gin," Harry smiled back.

They both missed the furious look on one of their friend's face at their sudden tenderness.

Soon, classes ended for the holidays, and those who had permission to travel to Australia prepared to go. Neville's grandmother had decided that she was holding a Christmas ball for many families, and told Neville it was his duty to be there. The Malfoys had plans, which Lucius refused to divulge to his son. Hannah's great-aunt was going to visit, and the family thought it might be the lady's last Christmas, so Hannah stayed behind. Luna's father was going to Russia, and said he needed her to catalogue his latest finds. The rest of the rag-tag group promised wonderful gifts upon their return and those left behind were slightly mollified.

The travelers piled onto the train to King's Cross with enthusiasm, talking loudly of all they hoped to see.

"I especially want to hear the Carols by Candlelight," Hermione sighed dreamily.

"Don't tell me you've already read a dozen books about Australia," Ron grumbled.

"No," she said, "only six."

Ginny laughed and leaned close to Harry.

"What are you looking forward to?"

He merely smiled and shook his head, looking around at the five friends that were going to Australia with him. It was something that never would have happened before, but he was luckier than he had any right to be. Which brought a morose thought to mind.

How long did he really have before everything went south?

A/N: I know it's a short chapter, but I had to put it up now. I still have some research to do for the next bit. As always, read and REVIEW! I love hearing from you! Also…the _Nox_ bit was intentional…in case you missed that. giggles


	12. Christmas Going

A Tale of Two Destinies

The train arrived at the station without incident. Sirius was standing on the platform, grinning as the eight of them stepped out.

"Are you lot ready?" he asked.

"You'd think you were the kid," Harry laughed.

"I am," his godfather replied with a wink. "That's why Remus, and Tonks, and my friend Kat are all going also."

"Kat?" Fred laughed. "Sirius – the dog star – has a friend named Kat?"

"Shut it, you," the man shot with a grin. "Let's head to the ministry."

There was an entrance to the ministry just down the street a bit from the station, so it was only a short period before they met with Remus and Tonks, and a very pretty brunette that they didn't know.

"I'm Kat," she smiled, holding out a hand to Harry. "You must be Harry, Sirius has told me so much about you."

"Funny…" Harry grinned evilly. "He hasn't told me about you yet. But I'm sure he hasn't told you about himself aside from the good stuff, so this could be a lot of fun."

Kat laughed at the flush in Sirius' cheeks. "Oh boy, could it."

"All right, let's go," Sirius growled.

The laughing group trouped into the portkey office. Within moments, a wizard brought a map of Melbourne to them.

"This is your portkey. It's usable only once for the trip down, and three days after the holiday to return. It is important to blend in with the locals, so there are changing rooms to your left that are charmed to show what muggles are currently wearing at your destination. Please keep the laws regarding international secrecy and enjoy your trip."

They hurried to the changing rooms, taking turns as there were a total twelve people going. Harry was first in and out, and found to his surprise that Kingsley was in the portkey office also. Trying to be unnoticed, Harry approached him.

"Kingsley," he nodded.

"Harry," the auror smiled. "I had something interesting to tell you, and heard you might be here."

The boy smiled. "What fun thing did you hear?"

"Lucius Malfoy is having a hard time convincing the minister to do things the way he wants."

Harry blinked. "That is a shocker. Why isn't the minister caving like usual?"

"Malfoy wants Dumbledore sacked for allowing the houses at Hogwarts to intermingle, and Fudge wants to visit the school first and observe the students."

He thought it over, knowing his time with the auror was running short. "This is a change. We need school unity if we're to stand against Voldemort. Having the minister on my side for a change might be nice also. Try to feel him out, and I'll be back a few days after Christmas."

Kingsley nodded and left the office, Harry went back to join the others.

"What was that about, Harry?" Sirius asked him. "How do you know Kingsley Shacklebolt?"

Harry glanced back at the door the auror had left through. "Is that his name? I just saw that he was an auror and I was talking to him. It sounds neat to be an auror."

Sirius shook his head. "It sounds neat now, kid. But when you're grown, you might not want to fight the bad guys all the time."

The boy laughed. "Well, if not, there's always professional quidditch."

Ron nodded enthusiastically. "I'll play Quidditch with you, Harry!"

Everyone laughed, and hurried to the departure point.

Melbourne was sunny and beautiful when they arrived, surprising the kids who hadn't traveled much between hemispheres. Hermione laughed and gestured to her shorts.

"I thought it was a little strange to dress like this, but now that I think about it, I'm happy the changing rooms told us what to wear."

"You forgot something factual?" Daphne laughed. "That's got to be the first time ever!"

Hermione stuck her tongue out, but smiled.

The group hurried to their hotel. The Phoenix Flame was a wizarding hotel, whose entrance was hidden in a small park. They usually asked their guests to keep their luggage shrunk and hidden until they got inside, so no passersby saw people dragging suitcases through the park.

"Welcome to the Phoenix Flame," the girl behind the desk bubbled. We're glad you could join us for Christmas hols. There's a big plate of Pavlova in every room, compliments of the management, and tomorrow the Fire Brigade will be showing Santa the town if the kids want to see him."

"What's Pavlova?" Fred asked Hermione, certain she'd know.

And she did. "It's a meringue shell filled with whipped cream and decorated with fresh fruits."

"Oh."

The group was soon out in Melbourne, enjoying the sites. They visited Captain Cook's Cottage, where Ron and Hermione fought over her supposition that the only part of the house Captain James Cook ever saw was the inscribed beam over a doorway. The view from the observation deck at the top of the Rialto building was breathtaking, and Harry and Ginny joked about diving off it with their brooms. Hermione thought they were acting terribly immature. When the group visited the aquarium, Hermione scolded the twins severely for scaring her by hiding and jumping out from one of the exhibits.

"Is Hermione purposely trying to ruin the day?" Justin asked Harry quietly.

The Boy-Who-Lived was beginning to wonder.

The tourism tours continued everyday the group was in Australia. On Christmas Eve, they went to the Christmas Tree Light Show in Federation Square, and they really enjoyed themselves. They were all tucked into their beds back at the hotel when Ron turned toward Harry.

"Hey, mate?"

Harry forced his eyes opened to look back at Ron. "Yeah?"

"Thanks for inviting me to come. I know I've been a little…odd lately."

"I meant what I said about it not being as fun without you, Ron," the black haired boy insisted.

Ron sighed. "It's just that…you and my sister have always been the close ones. I know I used to be there for everything, but it was always Ginny first."

"That hasn't changed," Harry nodded. "I can't really explain why, but Ginny and I are just part of each other. It doesn't change the fact that I think of you as my best friend. It's different with her."

"You really think of me as your best friend?" the youngest male Weasley asked. "Well, how about that?"

"Go to sleep, Ron," his best friend smiled. "Presents tomorrow."

Christmas brought dozens of gifts for each child, and a light heart for everyone. Harry told Ginny in their way about his conversation with her brother, and Ginny felt a slight pang of sadness for the loneliness he felt. It was a day in which, for once, no one fought. Even Sirius was surprised at the end of it. But on Boxing Day, they were right back to the way they always were. Most of the arguments betweens the children were simple enough, but one fight between Hermione and Justin was a little scary for Ginny in particular.

Hermione had been reading a book when Justin jokingly took it away.

"You read too much," he teased her. "We're going out to the lobby to test some of Fred and George's inventions. Come with us."

"No," she replied tartly. "Give me back my book."

"Come on," he wheedled. "What is it you have to study so much for?"

"I mean it, Justin," Hermione said angrily standing up. "Give me my book!"

He tossed it to her, shaking his head. "Fine. You're no fun when you're obsessed like that anyway."

Hermione slapped him, surprising everyone in the room.

"Hermione!" Ginny exclaimed.

"All of you just leave me alone!" the bushy haired girl shouted. "I like reading, okay? And I like being smarter than the rest of you. I'll be able to do spells someday that the rest of you won't even be able to dream of, so just leave me to my studies."

Harry and Ginny exchanged a look, before Harry asked, "But at what expense? Hermione, we only bug you because we like you and want to spend time with you."

"Just leave me alone," she answered, turning her back on them.

Hermione didn't talk again for the rest of the trip, but Ginny caught her once or twice reading a letter. She told herself she'd ask Hermione about the letter as soon as they were back at Hogwarts.

It had been a very confusing Christmas vacation.

* * *

A/N: Sorry about the long wait. Had a lot on my mind with work and family. I will be posting more regularly again though. Things have calmed down for now.


	13. Where's Ron?

A/N: This chapter is short, yes, but I couldn't write the rest of it and make you all wait while I work through the details.

A Tale of Two Destinies

After Christmas, time seemed to fly past. January disappeared in the blink of an eye, and before Harry could turn around fully, Valentine's Day was before them. He'd completely forgotten the fluffy holiday, until greeted in the main hall by a sea of grotesque pink. He apologized to Ginny, who completely blew him off, claiming it wasn't her favorite day. Despite searching the Gryffindor common room and dormitories, neither Ginny nor Harry found the diary. Ron had become angry and defensive when Draco had teased Harry about forgetting his girlfriend on Valentine's Day. Soon, the winter months began to fade, and at the beginning of May, Harry and Ginny finally got a real clue as to who had the diary of Tom Riddle.

It all started easily enough, with breakfast as usual. Harry and Ginny entered the great hall together, as they always did, speaking of one of Ginny's assignments for transfiguration. She was complaining about being bored, and he was insisting she be grateful for the chance to even sit in school knowing what she knew.

"Do you ever stop talking about school?" Draco asked, sighing. "Just be a kid."

"You're already ahead of everyone in the school, even Hermione," Ron scowled into his breakfast. "You think you'd relax and give the rest of us a chance."

Ginny stuck her tongue out playfully. "Everyone's got a chance to study hard, Ron. I can't help it if it's just easy for me. I _like_ learning."

"I like eating," he sulked, "and you're interrupting."

Harry shook his head as he saw Hermione frowning over an early morning post.

"What's wrong, Hermione?"

She looked for a moment like she was going to refuse to answer, but then she sighed heavily. "My parents. They were upset that I went to Australia instead of coming home for Christmas, and they've been threatening all year to take a summer holiday without me."

Ginny sat across from her, reaching out to take her hand. "That's awful. What will you do if they don't take you?"

The bushy haired girl shrugged. "I don't know. I want to learn about the wizarding world, but it just seems like the more I learn, the less my parents like it."

Draco sat next to her out of the blue. "I think my father is going to disown me before too long."

Everyone turned to stare at him.

"Why would you say that?" Harry asked, sitting next to Ginny.

"Over Christmas he had a party for former Death Eaters and he was not happy that I refused to join them in insulting the ministry and you."

Harry shook his head, his expression serious. "You should have insulted me, Draco. I wouldn't have minded."

Draco looked ferocious. "_I_ would mind, Potter. It's taken me long enough to realize what I really want, and I'm not compromising now."

Hermione shook her head for a moment. "What do you mean, long enough? You're only twelve."

Ginny smiled sweetly and kicked the blonde under the table. He scowled and shook his head.

"It feels like I've been fighting my father for much longer than that. I just don't want to be like him."

"Mum would probably let you both stay with us," Ginny suggested. "We've got lots of space at the Burrow."

"Sirius and I have lots of room too," Harry added. "We could cause trouble together all summer long."

Ron suddenly got up and left the table. Harry made a mental note to talk to him later. As the day wore on, he noticed Ron wasn't in any of his classes, and by lunch he was officially near panic.

His friends agreed to search the castle for Ron after lunch and were discussing who would search where when Neville came huffing up to the table, dragging Hannah behind him.

"Harry, there's a problem."

Harry looked around at his friend in surprise. "What's going on?"

"Remember how Justin stood up to the Hufflepuff when they were saying you and Ginny were dark?"

He nodded, the icy hand of fear wrapped around his heart.

"Justin and Nearly-Headless Nick were just found petrified in the fourth floor corridor. It looks like Daphne's basilisk got them," Hannah said.

"Don't call it mine!" the Slytherin girl exclaimed.

Ginny looked floored suddenly.

_Harry, we need to find Ron, and now!_

Harry spun around, and with the arrival of Neville and Hannah (excepting the now petrified Justin), all of his friends were at breakfast except Ginny's brother.

"Bloody hell," he swore, tearing out of the hall with Ginny at his heels.

They ran wildly through the halls, until Ginny grabbed his arm to stop him.

"Harry," she panted. "Go check your dorm, see if he returned there. I'll check the infirmary."

With a nod, he headed for Gryffindor tower. He arrived to find the dorm torn apart, but when he looked closer, Harry realized it was only his possessions thrown about. Ron had obviously not gotten over the closeness between Harry and Ginny, because he noticed a picture of he and his bondmate torn in half on the floor.

Letting loose a string of expletives that no twelve year old should even know, let alone use, Harry headed back out of the tower. He ran into Draco and Hermione on the stairs.

"Luna and Daphne went to check the quidditch pitch, and Neville and Hannah went to see if he was in the kitchens. Where's Ginny?"

Harry shot Draco a grateful look. "Gin is checking with Madame Pomfrey. Did you see if Dumbledore was at lunch?"

"The headmaster must have been wherever they found Justin and Sir Nicholas," Hermione said, looking scared. "I know I fight with Ron a lot…but… I didn't want him hurt!"

"He's going to be okay," Harry insisted. "I'm sure he just fell asleep somewhere."

The looked he exchanged with the Slytherin boy said something entirely different though.

Fred and George suddenly appeared, frantic and racing up the stairs.

"Harry! Where's Ginny and Ron? The Headmaster just said the school is on lock-down!"

Harry frowned deeply. "Why is the school on lock-down?"

George shook his head. "We don't know, but Dumbledore wants to see you and Ginny, right now."

Harry ground his teeth, trying not to shout. "I'll find Ginny."

He stalked away, knowing that Draco and Hermione were following him.

"Harry, I'm frightened for Ron," Hermione admitted. "Something is in the school, acting a lot like a basilisk, and I don't know what I'm supposed to do about it!"

Harry stopped in the hall and turned to face the near-hysterical girl.

"What could you do?" he asked her, his voice deadly serious. "You're a child. If there's a really a basilisk in the school, what chance does a child have against it?"

She blinked. "We should get Lockhart. He's supposed to be the DADA teacher!"

Both boys snorted.

"Somehow I don't think he'll be interested," Draco said. "We need to find them."

The three raced toward the infirmary, Harry fighting a feeling of dread that grew with every step. They were almost there when he felt the touch of Ginny's mind on his own.

_I found him_.

Harry stopped dead in his tracks, Hermione and Draco ran into him.

"Harry…" Draco said, only to be stopped by Harry raising his hand.

"Ginny found him," he hissed.

The silence that followed was painful. Harry wanted to reach out, wanted to follow the bond to Ginny's side, but he waited for some kind of signal. He was certain Ginny would tell him whether her brother truly had the diary or if he was merely upset. The seconds crawled by, each one gouging painfully at Harry as they tore away.

Just as he thought he would be driven mad by silence, something even worse happened.

A scream, loud and terrified, echoed through the halls.

"Ginny," Harry choked, racing madly after the sound.

He arrived at the place where his memory said her message had been left, whether by instinct or intent he couldn't tell. But the written words on the walls nearly tore his heart out.

_The two will lie in the Chamber for all time._

_The heir of Slytherin will rise again, more powerful than ever before._


	14. Slytherin's Chamber

A/N: This would have been up sooner had my Word and computer not both crashed in the same week and lost the work I'd done once. Hope you like it! By the way, for the person who said I missed an opportunity – I know I did, it was intended to set up something in this chapter and later stories and chapters. I'm not quite ready to flesh out every character all at once.

A Tale of Two Destinies

Harry roared in frustration and punched the wall. When he pulled his hand back it was bloody, though he neither knew nor cared whether it was the writing or his own blood the covered his knuckles.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed.

"I'm fine. I'm bloody pissed, though!" he snapped, feeling stupid. "This whole time it was Ron I was looking for. He had it the whole time and I passed his anger as jealousy. Now they've got Ginny!"

"Who does?" Hermione asked, not enjoying feeling left out.

"Relax, Harry," Draco said. "We'll just go get them."

Harry smirked. "Right, we'll just go find the basilisk and attack. Do you happen to have any anti-venom? Because I don't relish being bitten again."

"What do you mean again?" the bushy haired girl with them asked.

"Not now, Hermione," Draco said. "We need a plan, Harry. Who could help us?"

Harry thought, staring at the offending message. "We're going to need to keep people away from the bathroom. And we'll need a back up, just in case. Not to mention that we are going to need something to get them back up afterwards."

"What's going on?" Hermione demanded, getting angry.

Both boys acted as though they hadn't heard, and none of them noticed the other people approaching.

"We can't just go rushing in," Draco was saying. "It could kill us!"

"It could kill Ginny and Ron if we don't," Harry replied bleakly.

"Tell me what's happening!" Hermione shouted.

Draco looked somewhat amused by her furiously red face, but Harry just shook his head.

"You aren't ready for that information," he said softly, hating how much he sounded like Dumbledore. "I'll tell you soon, I promise, but right now I can't."

"That's probably a wise decision," the voice of Severus Snape sounded.

The three preteens jumped and turned to find the potions master, along with Fred, George, Neville, Hannah, Luna, and Daphne watching them curiously.

"Care to tell us the main information, though?" Fred asked curiously.

Harry was confused. "How did you all get here?"

"The misters Weasley thought it prudent to warn me that you were involved in something strange," Severus said. "And given your typical concern for your friends, I gathered them all in order to keep tabs on them."

Harry nodded absently.

"Does that message mean that whoever has control of Daphne's basilisk has kidnapped Ron and Ginny?" Hannah asked, pointing at the wall.

Daphne shoved Hannah. "Stop calling it _my_ basilisk! Do you have any idea of how that makes me sound?"

The Hufflepuff swung around. "Don't push me. I'll call it what I want. You're the one who came up with the idea of a basilisk!"

"I'm sorry I said anything, then. I should have let you all figure it out on your own! Why I'm helping Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, I'll never know."

Luna stepped between them. "Stop. This isn't helping."

"Bugger off, Luna," both girls shouted.

"Shut up!" Harry bellowed, covering all three girls' shouting. Everyone turned to face him, stunned.

Harry stood there, his angry eyes looking much older than twelve. He drew himself to his full height, and the very air around him seemed to crackle with a power he had never tapped into. Even Draco, who had known him in both lives, was surprised.

"All of you listen to me," he addressed the group, his voice low and almost venomous. "Ron and Ginny are in danger, and we are the only ones who can help now. Here's what we're going to do: Severus, I need you to keep people away from Moaning Myrtle's toilet. I'm not risking anyone else's safety. Neville and Hermione, find a floo, call Sirius and Molly Weasley and get them here as quickly as possible. Daphne, is there anything that counteracts basilisk venom or keeps you from being getting petrified when looking at them?"

The Slytherin looked shocked, but managed to speak. "There's a spell, to protect your eyes, I can do, but I don't know anything about how to go against the venom – except phoenix tears."

"Damn," Harry muttered. "Hannah, go to Dumbledore and tell him I'm willing to part with information if he's willing to let Fawkes come to me if I call. Daphne, perform the spell and go with Hannah and work out your argument. You're friends first, members of houses second."

Daphne immediately cast a quiet charm over his eyes, and Draco's when Harry indicated.

"Thank you," Harry said to her. "You'll have to teach all of us that spell sometime. Luna?"

"Yes, Harry?" the spacey girl asked in her off hand way.

"Go tell Madame Pomfrey to be prepared to receive guests in the infirmary." Harry looked to Draco. "I'm assuming you're coming with me?"

"Too right I am," he nodded fiercely.

"I thought so. Fred and George, I need you to find a way to expose Lockhart for the fraud he is. If he was really as great at Defense as he'd like us to believe, this wouldn't have happened."

Luna smiled and walked off without a backward glance, but the others stood staring at him in shock.

"Move, people!" he bellowed, sending even the potions master scurrying off to follow the twelve- year- old's orders.

Harry and Draco rushed toward the girls' bathroom that hid the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets. Neither spoke, but then, neither had to. Rushing somewhere to fight against Voldemort (or his younger alter ego) was something both of them had experience in, despite the time between.

The spirit of Myrtle wasn't in the bathroom when the boys entered, but they didn't really want her to be. Harry knew exactly how to get into the Chamber, and headed straight for the opening which was disguised as a sink.

_"Open,"_ the black haired boy hissed at the carved serpent before the sink slid away to reveal the entry.

"Interesting. Did you get a chance to look around before?" Draco commented.

Harry cursed himself suddenly. "I'm such an idiot!"

Draco blinked rapidly. "Why would you call yourself that?"

The other boy grimaced. "I could have just gone down at the beginning of the year, or even last year and dealt with the basilisk then. Then I wouldn't have to be doing this now, and no one would have been petrified."

The Slytherin put a hand on his Gryffindor friend's shoulder. "But you didn't. We can't worry over what's already passed. We aren't going to get another chance to go back and fix things. We just have to move forward now and not focus on the past."

Harry sighed, and without another glance as his friend, he jumped into the hole that would lead him to Ron and Ginny. He landed with a muffled crunch, and rolled out of the way. Draco crunched beside him only seconds later. The aristocratic boy stood slowly, brushing off his clothes.

"It really reeks down here," he commented, the former sneer creeping back into his voice.

Harry resisted the urge to laugh. "Of course it does. Think about it, Draco. The snake can't digest the bones."

"You mean this is…?" Draco quickly cast _lumos_ and looked around.

Even in the dim light, Harry saw the boy's face pale in the realization that he was standing in decaying basilisk dung. He lit his own wand and looked around the chamber carefully. He didn't want to be surprised this time around.

The walls were ancient stone, mildewed and molded, and crumbling in places. The floor, where he could see it, was the same stone, grouted with crushed bones from centuries past. He headed toward the now visible tunnel that he knew would take him to his destination. Draco followed behind, his active mind taking in all of the information he could discover about the secret location. Because they moved quickly and quietly, both boys soon arrived at the huge carved doors that separated them from their friends.

"Here goes," Harry sighed.

"Wait!" Draco said, clasping a hand to Harry's arm. "You're already faster than you were at getting here last time, right?"

At Harry's nod, Draco continued. "So you can look around from here. No need to go barging in like a panicked twelve year old when we can see what else is available."

"Good point," the black haired boy conceded.

The two searched either side of the door, and Harry was shocked when they actually discovered a room on either side.

"I never noticed these before," he admitted.

"You weren't thinking about them," Draco pointed out. "Slytherin built this place, he's bound to have stored something in here."

They searched the room on the left first, finding a simple, stone vault, filled with a large amount of gold, which the two boys decided to give to Ron and Ginny for their family after they rescued them. The room on the right held something much more precious. It seemed to be a potions lab with a shelf filled with dusty potions, and a half-rotted wooden table covered in books holding notes on those potions. Harry was looking at the vials, while Draco skimmed the notes.

"Bloody hell, Potter!" he suddenly exclaimed. "He's got potions for curing basilisk venom, longterm effects from the cruciatus, and one that's said to rejoin a person's soul after the creation of a horcrux!"

Harry spun around. "You mean, if we get all the horcruxes, and made him drink the potion, his soul would reunite and he'd be mortal again?"

The blonde shook his head. "He doesn't even have to drink it. We could just throw it at him while his horcruxes are near him. Or pour it on the items."

"But which is which, and do they keep for centuries?"

"The anti-venom is a yellow, and the horcrux is black. It doesn't say about the other."

Harry began grabbing vials and wiping the dust off in an effort to study the liquid inside. After grabbing a yellowish vial and a disgusting looking black one, he put them into separate pockets. He turned to see Draco looking satisfied.

"Let's go get our friends," he said grimly. "We can come back for the rest."

The two once again approached the door, and drew deep breaths. Harry pushed it open, noting that Draco crept away to his left. The Gryffindor boy breathed deep and strode forward, praying that his friends would not die. He saw Ron, laying at an odd angle in front of someone who was bound and gagged. Harry's breath caught when he realized it was the unconscious form of Ginny. He shot to her side and began untying the ropes that bound her, grateful they weren't tied with magic. He assessed her, noting the large purpling bruise on her temple.

"Aw, love. This isn't what I wanted to happen here," he murmured, half to himself.

"Neither of them will awaken for a while," the voice of a sixteen year old Tom Riddle spoke from a shadowed corner. "I didn't want them interrupting my first meeting with the great Harry Potter."

"Drop the act, you sadistic bastard," Harry snapped. "You aren't going to take me in. I know what that diary is, and I know what you had to do to make it. Bet you didn't share that story with Ron, did you?"

Tom's eyes went cold as he studied the boy before him. "And what do you plan to do about it, Potter?"

Gently laying Ginny on the ground again, Harry stood. "I'll kill you, just as I intend to kill the part of you that was unlucky enough to be stuck with what's left of your body."

Tom laughed. "You're nothing but a boy! And I am the heir to the greatest of the Hogwarts founders!"

As expected, Tom turned to the huge stone face of Salazar Slytherin on the far wall and spoke in parseltongue, commanding the basilisk to come forward. Harry wished he could call for Fawkes to come to his aid again, but he knew that he was on his own. With a quick slash with his wand, he transfigured a nearby stone into a sword, knowing just where to thrust it to end the basilisk's life, but he had no idea how to avoid the death glare from its eyes.

"_Sectumsempra_!" Draco shouted, suddenly leaping from out behind a pillar. The slicing spell landed true, across both the basilisk's eyes, solving one of their problems effectively.

"No!" shouted Tom, his face turning red in rage. "Bite them! Kill them both!"

"Draco, grab the others – I'll take care of the basilisk!" Harry cried, lunging out of the way of the basilisk's poisoned fangs.

The giant serpent reared again, swaying as it tried to judge where Harry was standing based on sound. Harry knew nothing would sway it from obeying its master's order, so he didn't even try reasoning with the serpent.

The basilisk turned toward the sound of Draco leaping toward the diary and scooping it off the floor, so Harry drew its attention by summoning and then banishing a stone into its side. The beast roared in anger, whipping around to streak after the boy who immediately dodge and ran, the laughter of Tom Riddle echoing after him.

Harry ducked into what looked like a sewage drain, hearing the hiss of scales against stone as the huge basilisk slithered after him. He examined the walls as he rushed past, finally seeing a small alcove on his left. He leapt to the side just before the jaws of the giant serpent snapped shut on his back. Without thinking, he leapt back out onto the beast's back, trying to make his way closer to the monster's head.

There wasn't enough room in the tunnel for the basilisk to turn around on itself and attack Harry, so it settled for rubbing against the walls, slamming Harry into the algae covered stones in an effort to dislodge him. The boy couldn't help but cry out in pain as the stones bruised and cut into the flesh on his shoulders and arms. His grip became slippery, but he gritted his teeth against the pain and tightened his hold, edging closer to the basilisk's head. Just as they reached a larger area that would allow the serpent to turn, Harry reached his goal and lifted the sword, using all of his strength to heave the sword through the beast's eye socket and into its brain.

The monster choked, and jerked to a stop, causing Harry to tumble forward, landing painfully on the floor. He scrambled to his feet and watched as it lurched, and swayed and crashed to the floor with a distinct rattle to its breath that told him the creature was dead. Harry paused to catch his breath, then approached the open mouth, noting that blood was already pooling beneath the basilisk's head. Grunting with effort, Harry began kicking at one of the front fangs, intending to dislodge it without hurting himself so that he could using it to destroy the diary. He had the potion that would release the bit of spirit, but he wanted the diary destroyed utterly.

Harry was unsure whether the piece of soul would be capable of retaining memories, but he wasn't about to chance Voldemort finding out that he was capable of advanced magic, or how he really felt about Ginny, or even where Draco's true loyalties lie. No, it was better to just destroy that piece of dark magic.

Finally the fang broke free, and Harry snatched it up and ran back to the main chamber. Upon entering he saw Draco trying to wake Ginny by lightly slapping her cheek. Harry noticed he didn't have a wand, and assumed that Tom had taken it. There was a rather square shape in the pocket of his robe, and Harry assumed that was the diary.

"Where is he?" Harry asked.

"I'm right here," Tom replied, stepping out of the shadows. "I'm quite surprised that you defeated my basilisk. However did you manage to transfigure that rock? That's a bit beyond the normal second year fare."

"So's this," Harry growled fiercely. "_Accio diary_!"

The book flew out of Draco's pocket, surprising even the Slytherin boy. As it flew at him Harry merely held up the fang, smiling with a small amount of grim satisfaction as the book was impaled, the memory of Tom Riddle screamed and exploded into a burst of light. Harry slumped to his knees, close to blacking out, but Draco's insistent voice finally got through to him.

"Potter! Potter, you'd better snap out of it, because I can't carry everyone out of here!"

Harry looked up just as Ron was beginning to stir. He crawled over to them, as Draco retrieved his wand and woke Ginny with _ennervate._

"What's going on?" Ron asked, looking around in shock. "Oh no…it was me."

"No," Harry told him. "It was Tom Riddle…also known as Voldemort. That diary was his and he was using you to try to come back."

Ron looked sick. "But…I petrified everyone! And Hagrid's chickens. I strangled them."

"No, Ron. Voldemort did all that," the boy who lived insisted. "What I don't understand is why you wrote in the diary."

The red haired boy slumped. "I felt left out. You and Ginny were so close, and then she was here at Hogwarts, too. I thought you didn't need me as a friend anymore. And then I kept making Hermione angry with everything I said. Neville was friends with the Hufflepuffs. Luna, Draco, and Daphne aren't even in our house. I kind of felt like I didn't have anyone."

"You have me, Ron!" Ginny said suddenly, throwing her arms around her brother. "You've always been my favorite, and I love you. No one could replace you!"

"You're my best mate," Harry added, clapping him on the shoulder. "Yeah, I'm close to Ginny, but that's different. The way I feel about her is…something else."

"I'm sorry," Ron said again. "I should have known you weren't really tired of me."

Draco regarded the three seriously. "They could have done a better job of showing you. They were ignoring things a little."

The Weasley boy looked at the blonde in surprise.

"I'm serious, Ron," Draco insisted. "This year, while Harry and Ginny got all wrapped up in each other, you went through all this, Hermione's fighting with her parents, Luna's acting strange still, and Justin's in the hospital wing. They could have paid more attention."

Ron looked up in surprise. "No, they couldn't have fixed all that. We're just kids."

The blonde just smirked in a friendly way. "You're right, we are. Which means you wouldn't have been able to fix anything either, Ron. You have to forgive yourself."

The redhead looked grateful, even though his eyes were still haunted.

"At any rate," Ginny encouraged her brother. "Let's get out of here."

The climbed to their feet and headed for the exit, Harry pocketing the diary on the way. Outside the doors, Draco stopped them and pulled out a money pouch.

"Don't forget the gold," he reminded Harry. "I just remembered that I have a bottomless bag, that we can carry it all in."

They opened the "vault" door, and Ron and Ginny gasped at the amount of gold left behind by the dubious founder. Working together, they scooped it into the bag in only fifteen minutes. Draco drew the bag closed, tested its weight, and then handed it to Ron.

"What are you doing?" the older boy asked.

"You were the one tortured by Slytherin's heir," Harry answered. "It's only right that Slytherin have to compensate."

Ron looked like he might argue, but Ginny put a hand on his arm. "It's only fair, Ron. It might not keep the nightmares away, but it should at least help Mum and Dad."

Finally he nodded. The four made a quick stop to gather up the notes and potions books for Professor Snape, and Draco shrank them and put them in his pocket, so he could present them to the potions master in private. The small group made its way back to the opening in the floor of the girl's restroom and heard voices above. They could easily make out who was in the restroom based on the voices.

"We are, of course, going to rescue the children," the headmaster was assuring the others. "As soon as we have all the available information."

"By that time, my babies could be dead!" Molly shouted at him. "Go get them!"

"Molly, I know you're worried, but screaming like that isn't helping," Professor McGonagall soothed the distraught mother.

"There are three children down there and you want me to be calm?" Molly retorted.

"Four," Professor Snape corrected. "Draco Malfoy went with Harry to help."

"Albus, as much as I respect you, I'll have you brought up on charges if anything happens to Harry," Sirius informed the headmaster.

Supressing his relieved laughter, Harry called up, "If you'll throw down a rope or something, we'll get ourselves out of here and you'll all be happy."

Moments later, when Harry emerged last from the entrance, he found himself being smothered by Molly first, and then Sirius. Draco had a dazed look on his face, as the Weasley matriarch had even hugged him. Harry looked around and noticed his friends there also. They rushed at him, enveloping the four that had been in the Chamber in hugs and chatter.

Professor McGonagall shooed them toward the hospital wing before much had been said though. Harry knew he should go, after all, his shoulders were still encrusted with blood. Later that night, Ginny crept silently into his bed, and he sat up, holding her tightly.

"I thought I'd lost you," he whispered. "I was so angry and scared."

Ginny nuzzled into his chest. "I knew you'd come. You're always there when I need you."

The two watched in silence as Professor Sprout and Madame Pomfrey administered the Mandrake Drought to the petrified people, and heard them say that they should be revived in time for breakfast.

Harry sighed. He was just glad this year was almost over.


	15. The Year Ends

A Tale of Two Destinies

The next morning dawned bright and cheerful, and all of the occupants of the infirmary awoke as well. Harry grinned and hugged Justin, and even Colin. Ron was scared that everyone might blame him, but Justin walked right up to him and grinned.

"Honestly, Ron," the Hufflepuff said, shaking his head. "I don't know how you're still sane. To resist a possession for that long? You're got to have some kind of ferocious will power."

Colin nodded his agreement. "If anyone tries to give you crap about it, we'll get 'em."

Harry suppressed a laugh at the thought of Colin attacking anyone. Madame Pomfrey looked like she was ready to explode with all the talking and laughing going on.

"All right," she finally said. "You're all free to go to breakfast. Get out of here."

The group left, mostly scattering to their regular seats when they reached the great hall. Harry noticed with a silent nudge to Ginny, that all the tension that had been building in Daphne's face seemed to drain when Justin walked in, smiling and laughing. Of course, the Slytherin girl greeted the Hufflepuff boy coolly, but the young couple watching them noticed her stealing a happy glance at him when he turned to talk to Neville.

Hermione sighed as she read a note from her parents. Ron leaned over.

"What's wrong Hermione?" he asked, concerned.

The bushy haired girl shook her head with pink cheeks. "You don't want to know."

Harry was a bit surprised when Ron put his hand on their friend's arm and frowned. "Yes, I do. You're my friend and I want you to be happy. If you tell me what happened, maybe I can help."

Hermione looked as astonished as Harry felt, but she replied, "Well, my parents are still angry I didn't come home for Christmas. They want me to spend the whole holiday with them, and they aren't going to let me come to visit you and Harry."

"That's awful, Hermione," Ginny said, mirroring the frown on her brother's face.

"It will be fine," Ron insisted. "You'll go home, like you were planning to, and we'll all start bombarding your parents with owls asking if you can come for a visit until they let you. There are seven of us, and the twins, and Mum, Dad, Sirius, Remus, and even Tonks. We can send them a different owl every day for two weeks and keep sending until they say yes."

"That's actually a brilliant strategy, Ron," Neville complimented him.

Ron shrugged. "We've got to get them to let her come at least by Harry's birthday. He'll be thirteen this year!"

An owl swooped in, dropping a note in front of Draco, who frowned at it. His friends held their breaths a little as he opened and read it.

"It's from mother," he said, wonderingly. "She says that father is very angry with me, and that he's ordered me from the house. She apparently tried to argue with him, and he's kicked her out as well. Right now, she's at the Leaky Cauldron, and wants me to go to a friend's house until he calms down or she finds a place to live."

"Draco, I'm sorry," Harry said softly. "I never thought he would go that far."

The Malfoy heir shook his head. "Father has to come to his senses eventually. I know he loves his family, but he needs to realize it himself. I don't hold this against him; he was raised to be this way. He tried to raise me to be that way, but I found a better way. I have to believe he will as well."

"Where will you go?" Daphne asked, concerned over her friend's predicament.

"He'll come to my house," Harry announced. "His mother and my godfather are cousins, and that makes them family. Sirius and I would never let family be without a place to stay. Write your mother and tell her to go to Sirius' house, if you think she would."

Draco nodded, unable to say the thanks that showed in his eyes.

"Anyone else want to stay somewhere they don't live this summer?" Ginny laughed, breaking the tension. "Or should we wait until Harry's birthday to add to the circus?"

"Let's wait," Ron smiled.

As the children laughed, Dumbledore approached their table. Seeing the headmaster, whom they'd all begun to look at a bit differently, quieted the group.

"Harry, may I speak with you privately?" he asked in a congenial tone.

"Probably not," Harry answered truthfully. "Anything that is said between us will be repeated to my friends here."

"Be that as it may," the headmaster conceded, "I would appreciate the chance to talk to you alone first."

"We both know I'm never alone," the boy said, his gaze turning mildly defiant.

"Harry," Ginny said softly, obviously putting a lot of meaning into that single word.

The six other students sitting nearby watched the exchange tensely, ready to spring to Harry's defense if necessary. Finally, Harry seemed to agree to whatever Ginny was implying, and sighed.

"All right, headmaster. We'll speak after breakfast. I'm terribly hungry after last night."

The old man nodded and walked away, not missing the hissing whispers that broke out almost immediately.

It was almost an hour later when Harry ascended the steps to Dumbledore's office. He'd assured his friends that he was in no danger, but Ginny still convinced him to keep constant contact during the meeting.

"Harry! Come right in," Dumbledore smiled.

Harry resisted the urge to scowl at him. There was no way that the Headmaster could know what was truly happening, but he still acted as though he held all the cards. Harry realized that Dumbledore pretended to be confident so that everyone around him would assume he was in control. The realization, unfortunately, did not raise Harry's esteem of the older wizard. He sat in a comfortable chair opposite the headmaster and watched the older man blankly, already preparing his mental shields.

"Would you like to tell me how you knew where to find your friends? Or how to get to them?" Dumbledore asked, sensing that any preamble would further agitate his student.

Harry shook his head. "Would you like to tell me how you didn't? Twice now I've had to risk my life to keep a certain dark wizard from returning to torment people, and twice now I've done it without the help of someone who's supposed to be in charge."

"Harry, how do you suggest I should know these things? As much as I know, I can't know everything."

To the surprise of the headmaster, Harry actually laughed. "Maybe if you were more willing to admit that fact, it would be easier to bring things to your attention. You always push your opinions – even the uninformed ones – on everyone until they're ready to scream. I would have let you know that a group of first and second year students figured out it was a basilisk months ago if I thought I could discuss it with you openly."

Dumbledore drew a weary hand over his face. "I'm merely trying to protect those around me."

Knowing it was cruel, Harry leaned forward with a grim expression. "That always turns out well for you, doesn't it?"

The headmaster's gaze instantly leapt to the boy's knowing eyes, and he coughed. There were several moments of silence in the room.

"I still believe you're too young to attempt these things on your own, Harry. I'd like you to talk to me before attempting something so dangerous."

"Why does Voldemort want me dead, sir?"

The silence that came was not really surprising to Harry. After a few moments of silently discussing the direction of the conversation with Ginny, he stood and walked toward the door.

Before heading back to his friends, Harry turned and looked at the elder.

"You keep asking me to trust you, sir. But you're unwilling to trust me. Until you're willing to move, I'm afraid I can't."

Ginny paced the library, feeling Harry's frustration as he neared. In a tight group near the back of the library sat a fairly large, and fairly private, group of students. Fred and George, Ron, Neville, Hermione, Luna, Daphne, Hannah, Justin, and Draco watched her progress to and fro.

Their friends were silent, knowing her mood reflected his. As he entered, stewing in silence, she stopped to watch him. She knew everything about Harry. She had even before they'd bonded. All of his stress was going to lie coiled in his shoulders and neck, and he'd wake with a headache in the morning.

As soon as Harry sat at the table, Ginny moved behind him and began massaging his shoulders, her hands moving in a rhythm established many years before, before she'd even realized he'd stolen her heart. She felt him relax some the moment her hands touched him.

"What happened?" Ron asked as soon as his friend sat.

Harry sighed, "The headmaster wanted to know all sorts of things, like how I knew what was going on, how I managed to get you out, and he wanted me to talk to him before attempting anything like that on my own."

"That's insane," Daphne snapped, looking as irritated as Ginny felt. "What, is someone out there planning things to make your life miserable?"

Hermione was watching Ginny, not speaking – although the younger girl could tell she really wanted to.

"I've been wondering too, Harry," Neville said in his quiet, serious way. "How did you know all that?"

Harry tensed again and glanced up at Ginny. She gave his shoulders a light squeeze and looked at Neville.

"It's not something we could tell you, Neville. There are things that must be kept secret, and we have to be the ones to do that."

He looked frustrated, and Ginny glanced around at their friends. Most of them looked frustrated with her statement, except Draco, Luna, and surprisingly Ron. Draco already knew what was going on, and why it had to be secret. It wasn't in Luna's nature to ask questions, but she did have Ginny pinned with a rather intense look. Even the twins noticed Ron's lack of aggravation in the situation.

"Don't you want to know, Ron?" Fred asked, drawing everyone's attention to the youngest male Weasley.

Ron shook his head. "It's not that I wouldn't like to know, guys," Ron explained, his voice the same quietly reserved tone it had been since waking that morning. "But I trust Harry and Ginny. If there's something that needs done or said, I trust they'll do it. But I am going to start working on this thing called occlumency, where you can completely block things in your head. Perhaps, when I've mastered that, they'll be able to share whatever it is they can't now."

Hermione stared at him in wonder, and silently stood and hugged him. Ginny and Harry passed a warm feeling between each other upon seeing it, but neither made any outward sign of notice.

The children were quiet for a moment, before the talk turned to their plans for the summer, and how awful it would be to be separated out for the year. Harry wondered what other surprises were in store for the coming days, while Ginny merely wondered if time would ever get to a point where she could curl up in Harry's arms without feeling she was somehow doing something wrong to her young body.

As they all began to leave the library, Luna caught Ginny's arm.

"A word, my friend," the blonde girl said softly. "If you don't want people to know that you and your soulmate aren't typical children, you might consider not acting like a married couple. Most of the kids think it's because you're best friends and have grown up so close and all, but I've been watching you. I'm not going to tell anyone else, but I don't think you and Harry are quite eleven and twelve."

Ginny drew in a sharp breath. "Luna…"

"Don't worry about it, Ginny. We'll talk later."

She walked away, leaving the redhead to stare after. Harry approached and laid an inquisitive hand on her shoulder.

"This reliving life thing is going to kill me," she muttered.

Harry leaned closer to whisper, "You're dying of old age this time. You promised."

She laughed and headed back to Gryffindor tower with the others.

A/N: Here ends A Tale of Two Destinies: The Chamber. Coming soon is A Tale of Two Destinies: The Prisoner. I haven't forgotten about any of my stories. I've been going through some intense training at work, and some rough personal times. I WILL finish, it just takes a bit for this crazy woman to get things together.


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